Sadly for Athletic it was not the total domination of the away trip to Old Trafford neither was it the 'smash and grab' victory away at Schalke. Instead Les Leones once again need to overturn a 2-1 away defeat next week at San Mames; like they did against Lokomotiv Moscow. The result is far from disastrous thanks to Jon Aurtenetxe's away goal but it could have been far worse given the domination of the home side for the majority of the game.
From the very start Sporting looked like the brightest side pressing Athletic and disrupting their passing game. Ricky van Wolfswinkel came closer than anyone in the first half when his early shot on the turn fizzed past Irazioz in goal. The most significant action for Athletic in the first half came in the tenth minute when midfielder Oscar De Marcos picked up a yellow card for a foul on Diego Capel. As a result De Marcos will miss the return leg while Athletic will miss his runs from midfield beyond Llorente.
As the first half went on Iker Muniain moved in to an increasingly central position and he took up a more central role in the game but Athletic looked most dangerous from set pieces when Llorente headed over from a corner in the 12th minute. After half time Athletic did indeed succeed from a set piece. Markel Suseata supplied a free-kick from the right hand side and after a deflection the ball fell to Aurtenetxe who slotted home past goalkeeper Rui Patricio. The lead could have been doubled on the hour mark when Fernando Amorebieta struck the foot of the right-hand post just before the hour mark.
After Athletic's strongest spell of pressure Sporting's equaliser came as something of a shock. The goal came from an unlikely source in the form of former Liverpool left back Emiliano Insua. Diego Capel's cross was poorly cleared and Insua capitalised as he headed in from 10 yards. For the remaining 15 minutes Sporting dominated and may rue not scoring a third before the final whistle. Though they did though score a second. Diego Capel cut inside from his right hand flank before finding the bottom corner with his left foot. The best chance of the final moments was indeed for Sporting. Bruno Perierinha blasted his shot over the bar when he could have scored the decisive goal in the tie.
While Athletic are behind in the tie they can take solace in their away goal and the knowledge that tempo setting centre back Javi Martinez will return from suspension next Thursday. While the loss of De Marcos will not be insignificant a 1-0 victory will see Athletic through to an all Spanish final against either Valencia or Athletio Madrid; the latter running-out 4-2 winners last night in Madrid. After a dramatic night of Iberian football each of the four semi-finalists could yet make the final on May 9th.
This match was watched by Jack Dennison. Follow him on twitter - @JPKD
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