Milan 4 - 1 Deportivo La Coruña | Porto 2 - 0 Lyon

Champions League

Milan staged a scintillating fightback from a goal down to sweep aside Deportivo La Coruña 4-1 and make the European champions firm favourites to advance to this year's semi-finals.

The San Siro crowd were stunned in the 11th minute when Deportivo's Uruguayan centre-forward Walter Pandiani rose unmarked to power in a header from six yards out. But just before half-time Milan's 21-year-old Brazilian playmaker Kaka scored an exceptional equaliser, controlling the ball on his left thigh and volleying in with his right foot in one fluid movement.

Milan started the second period as they had ended the first, with Andriy Shevchenko, within seconds of the restart, taking out two defenders with a slick turn and beating the keeper with a low drive. Three minutes later Kaka added a third with a shot from 18 yards and Andrea Pirlo rounded off the scoring with a long-range free-kick.

In the night's other quarter-final Porto gave themselves a solid platform for the second leg with a 2-0 home victory over Lyon.

The Brazilian midfielder Deco gave the Portuguese team the lead in the 44th minute, steering in a snap shot from Benni McCarthy.

In the second half Porto continued to create chances and they were rewarded for their patient approach when Ricardo Carvalho headed in a Deco free-kick from the right for the second after 71 minutes.

The closest the French side came to an away goal that would have given them greater hope for the second leg was in the 39th minute when the ball broke to Sidney Govou on the edge of the box but his shot was deflected over.

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