Liverpool thrash Sparta, Leverkusen clinch stoppage-time win
Sports
Serbian striker Veljko Birmancevic pulled one back for the visitors before the break
LIVERPOOL, England (Reuters) - Liverpool hammered Sparta Prague 6-1 on Thursday to storm into the Europa League quarter-finals 11-2 on aggregate while Bayer Leverkusen staged a dramatic turnaround to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat against Qarabag.
Liverpool were 4-0 up within 14 minutes thanks to goals by Darwin Nunez, Bobby Clark, Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo.
Serbian striker Veljko Birmancevic pulled one back for the visitors before the break, but Liverpool continued to dominate.
Midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai scored the hosts' fifth goal and Gakpo netted his second to complete Liverpool's rout.
In a nail-biting thriller, Leverkusen secured a 3-2 home victory over Azerbaijani team Qarabag, with Patrik Schick's stoppage-time brace ensuring a 5-4 aggregate win and extending Leverkusen's unbeaten run to 37 games.
Brighton & Hove Albion's effort to bridge a four-goal deficit against AS Roma proved futile as they could only manage a 1-0 home victory, Danny Welbeck's curler a consolation in Roma's 4-1 aggregate win.
Atalanta secured a hardfought 2-1 home victory over Portuguese side Sporting, with Ademola Lookman and Gianluca Scamacca turning the match around for the hosts to seal a 3-2 aggregate win for the Italian team.
