By Bilbao blitzes United, City also exits Europa

BILBAO: Athletic Bilbao blitzed Manchester United 2-1 to lead three Spanish teams into the Europa League quarterfinals, while Manchester City also left England without representation despite a 3-2 victory over Sporting Lisbon on Thursday.Fernando Llorente and Oscar de Marcos scored in each half as Athletic overwhelmed United, which got a late consolation goal from Wayne Rooney, for a 5-3 aggregate victory that should have been much more. The young Basque club, which also mesmerized in a 3-2 win at Old Trafford, reached the last eight of a UEFA competition for the first time in 35 years to emerge as one of the competition favorites.Valencia drew 1-1 at PSV Eindhoven to advance alongside fellow Spanish club Atletico Madrid, which capped a 6-1 series win with a 3-0 rout at Besiktas.Schalke, AZ Alkmaar, Hannover and Metalist Kharkiv also advanced, with Friday’s draw determining the next round of matchups. American midfielder Jermaine Jones scored his first goal for Schalke in more than 1 1/2 years.City crashed out on away goals despite rallying at home against its Portuguese opponent, which took the lead in the 33rd minute when Matias Fernandez curled home a free kick. Ricky van Wolfswinkel doubled the visitors’ lead seven minutes later.Needing four goals to progress, City almost completed an astonishing comeback as Sergio Aguero scored in the 60th and 82nd, sandwiching Mario Balotelli’s 75th-minute penalty, to level the aggregate score at 3-3.Chelsea is the only remaining English club playing in Europe after reaching the Champions League quarterfinals, with the pair of Manchester rivals having to settle with fighting for the Premier League title, with United leading City by one point.“I don’t think we can complain of the result,” United manager Alex Ferguson said. “Trying to analyze this season (in Europe) against other seasons is a bit difficult. It’s been a disappointing year.”

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By Bilbao blitzes United, City also exits Europa