UEFA Cup loses top-name clubs
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-03-17 09:06

Victoras Iacob headed the second after 78 minutes and Nicolita added a third as Betis, facing a survival battle in Primera Liga, fell to pieces.

Schalke, 1-0 down from the first leg, were helped on their way to a 3-0 win in the return when Palermo captain Eugenio Corini was sent off for stopping Mladen Krstajic's shot with his hands on the goalline late in the first half.

Georgian international Levan Kobiashvili placed his penalty down the middle as Mariano Andujar dived to his left to send the Bundesliga side in front at halftime.

Two goals in the final 18 minutes sealed Palermo's fate. German international forward Gerald Asamoah crossed for Dane Soren Larsen to head in, then set up Mimoun Azaouagh to rifle in a third.

Any hopes Ligue 1 strugglers Strasbourg had of overturning their 2-0 first-leg defeat were effectively killed off when Brazilian striker Eduardo scored for Basel in the third minute.

Striker Rudy Carlier hauled Strasbourg level seven minutes later but Eduardo struck again in the first half. Cedric Kante's late goal earned Strasbourg a 2-2 draw.

Croatian defender Igor Tomasic headed Levski Sofia into the quarter-finals as the Bulgarians beat Udinese 2-1 to go through by the same score on aggregate.

Tomasic scored with a glancing header from Lusio Vagner's cross in the 63rd minute, completing a fine fightback after the Serie A side had gone ahead.

Levski, unbeaten at home in the competition this season, trailed to Argentine Fernando Tissone's goal midway through the first half but midfielder Daniel Borimirov levelled from Sedrik Bardon's cross on 52 minutes.

The final is in Eindhoven on May 10.