Athletic Bilbao capitalized on their numerical advantage and a brace from Nico Williams to secure a 3-1 victory over Roma on Thursday, advancing to the Europa League quarterfinals.
Despite Roma's 2-1 win in the first leg of their round-of-16 clash last week, their task became significantly harder when Mats Hummels was sent off with a straight red card in the 11th minute for fouling Maroan Sannadi, leaving them with 10 men.
Roma managed to hold their ground until stoppage time in the first half when the Williams brothers combined to break the deadlock. Inaki's deflected cross from the left found Nico at the far post, who slotted home the opening goal. Yuri Berchiche then headed in a second, and Nico added another late in the game to seal the win for Athletic Bilbao, keeping their hopes alive for the final, which will be held at their stadium on May 21. Leandro Paredes scored a consolation goal for Roma in stoppage time.
Athletic Bilbao will now face either Rangers or Fenerbahce in the next round.
Meanwhile, Lazio progressed to the quarterfinals after a 1-1 draw with Viktoria Plzen, thanks to Alessio Romagnoli's 77th-minute header. Plzen had taken the lead early in the second half through Pavel Šulc, but Lazio's first-leg 2-1 victory ensured their advancement. Lazio will next play Bodø/Glimt, who also moved forward despite a 2-1 loss to Olympiacos. The Norwegian side had won 3-0 in the first leg, securing a 4-2 aggregate victory.
Eintracht Frankfurt comfortably advanced to the quarterfinals with a 4-1 home win over Ajax, completing a 6-2 aggregate triumph. Mario Götze starred with two goals for the 2022 Europa League champions and 1980 UEFA Cup winners. Frankfurt will next face either Tottenham or AZ Alkmaar.
In the Conference League, Slovenian side Celje edged past 10-man Lugano 3-1 on penalties after a thrilling 5-5 aggregate draw. Rapid Wien also progressed after a 2-1 extra-time victory over Borac. Djurgården defeated Pafos 3-0, advancing 3-1 on aggregate, while Polish team Jagiellonia lost 2-0 to Cercle Brugge in Belgium but moved forward thanks to their 3-0 home win from the first leg.