Sporting Lisbon kept on course to reach the UEFA Cup final on their home ground after a 2-1 victory against AZ Alkmaar in the first leg of their semi-final at the Jose Alvalade Stadium.

The Portuguese team, who have accounted for Newcastle and Middlesbrough, took a lead into the second leg thanks to a spectacular 25-yard strike from Chile international Mauricio Pinilla 10 minutes from time.

AZ, who beat Rangers in the group stage earlier this season, grabbed the lead as star midfielder Denny Landzaat scored what could prove to be a vital away goal in the 36th minute, firing a first-time shot past Ricardo.

The lead lasted a matter of seconds for the Dutch side though as the pacy Cameroonian striker Roudolphe Douala took advantage of a lucky deflection to drive a shot past AZ goalkeeper Henk Timmer.

Sporting forged ahead through substitute Pinilla, who was booked for removing his shirt in celebration.

In the night's other semi-final first leg, Parma were held to a goalless draw by CSKA Moscow at the Ennio Tardini stadium.

The Italian club are in real danger of being relegated from Serie A, but at least avoided conceding an away goal to the Russian side, who dropped down into the UEFA Cup after failing to reach the Champions League knockout stages.

Should be a great match, think AZ will snatch it and maybe go on to win.

i cry, i cry and i cry... the saddest thing that could happen after the PSV-drama... The atmosphere in the Alkmaarderhout was superb... 8000 people, of which most AZ fans screamed their lungs out to get them to score... i prayed for goals and they came... but in the extra time of the first half and in the extra time of the second half overtime those portuguese guys didn't fail... it is such a shame... Holland deserved more, Europe deserved more, the World deserved more... and with more i mean spectacular finals with attacking teams like AZ and PSV... i cry, i cry, i cry...

I watched both games and i think that luck just doesnt shine on Holland at the moment, PSV should have won as Milan were never int he game and tonight AZ were very unlucky to lose, you could see the players faces, they were all crying, i really hope that sporting and milan lose for what they did to these 2 teams.

hello AZ fans.

I watched AZ-Sporting, and PSV-Milan. Netherlands played very well. You are just unlucky, but that is the football.

You deserved both final games, especialy AZ ( sorry for my english). Great season for that club is behind.

I want to congratulate AZ for achivements and PSV as well. I know what brings the final game in UEFA Champions League and UEFA cup, but dont worry , you are over sporting, end over Milan about display matters.. You are just better and who [beep!] them. I will watch the final games, but with less passion ' cos I know they can not offer better football than you guys.
I wish you more luck next time, everthing else you already got.

onee again I admire you. and many people do.

Bravo !!!!!

Hello, i support sporting, and im very happy that sporting won as it would be expected. I'm sorry you think sporting didn't deserve to win, which is a pitty. I understand that AZ played very well but i'm sure you know that in football luck also counts. scoring in the last minute was luck yes, but a referee that doesnt see a so obvious penalty over miguel garcia in the 1st half and that bald old player of AZ that tried to kill several of sporting players throughout the whole game and he only saw a yellow card with like seconds to the end of the game...well..
I think AZ is a great team, and it's a pitty they both can't be in the final but sporting played well, it wasn't just AZ. specially in the 1st half of the game and the 1st half of the extra time , i think sporting was better, but again luck was decisive. I can only say that i'm with the AZ fans because it would have been the worst day of my life if sporting lost like AZ did, or like Sporting looked like they were gonna loose. I think sporting deserved the victory because of beliefe and never quitting. It's a pitty they both couldn't pass. I wish good luck to AZ and it's fans.

well Jose, as you said ur a Sporting fan... and IMO ur soooo biased... coz i think that almost the whole rest of Europe and the world would say that AZ definitely was better, possibly also in the home game of Sporting (the major newspapers and loads of experts at least do)... but then Pinilla scored a vital goal... if AZ then was a bit better in finishing it could've easily been 2-5... your correct statement is that luck is a part of the game, i agree on that, but the luck they had in Alkmaar was just way too much... you say that the Sporting players never quitted and that they always kept believing in it... but the AZ-players did the same... they had the better game, more spirit and passion... overall AZ deserved it more, can't argue about that

P.S. i am an Ajax (and Real Madrid) supporter (Rivals of AZ in the Dutch competition)

P.S. 2 read this Jose: Fifa Rulesbook
Law 10 - Method of Scoring: Very applicable to playoffs and Cup Qualifiers With regard to the method for determining the winner of a match, the IFAB ruled in favour of extra-time, consisting of two periods of no more than 15 minutes each, followed by kicks from the penalty mark. As a result, matches will no longer be decided by "golden goal" or "silver goal".

All of the changes to the Laws of the Game shall come into force worldwide on 1 July 2004.

this means that there shouldn't have been an extra time... and then the goal in the 122th minute would've never been there... so be very, very, very lucky but understand that Sporting didn't deserve it

what so this means the result is a farse then?