Benfica 4 Zenit St Petersburg 3
Zenit got to host the first leg in brutal Russian conditions. They won that game 3-2. Therefore, everyone expected Benfica to come out and attack from the get go. That is exactly what they did. Zenit did a good job of resisting, but in stoppage time of the first half, Alex Witsel took a shot that was saved by Zenit goalkeeper Vyacheslav Malafeev. But Malafeev gave up a rebound to Witsel who nicely passed it to Maxi Pereira for the easy goal. That put the aggregate at 3-3, but the first tiebreaker is away goals, so Benefica had the edge. Zenit knew they needed to score a goal in the second half to advance. Zenit really posed little threat though, as they only got two shots on goal. In stoppage time, Nelson Miguel Castro Oliveira sealed the victory for Benfica with a goal. The Portuguese side is through to the quarterfinals.
AC Milan 4 Arsenal 3
In the first leg, AC Milan dominated Arsenal in every aspect of the game, winning the game 4-0. Everyone expected Arsenal to respond, but no one knew how. No one had ever comeback from such a large deficit in the history of the competition. But for the first two-thirds of the second leg, it certainly looked like Arsenal could be the first. Laurent Koscielny started the scoring in the 7th minute and Tomas Rosicky added another in the 26th. In the 43 minute, Robin Van Persie buried a penalty kick to trim the Milan aggregate lead to one. The Gunners came out strong in the second half as well, but couldn't find the goal they needed. Then, it seemed as if Milan flipped a switch and turned on the defensive prowess. They managed to hold on until the final whistle. Despite a disappointing second leg, the Italian side will be in the quarterfinals.
Apoel Nicosia 1 Lyon 1 (Apoel advances 4-3 in penalty kicks)
No one expected Apoel to make it this far, so they figured they didn't have anything to lose. They had already advanced the farthest any Cypriot side had ever advanced. So a 1-0 deficit coming into the second leg seemed manageable. They quickly dismissed that margin when they scored just nine minutes in. Constantinos Charalambides sent a low cross in that found the foot of his teammate Gustavo Manduca for the equalizer. Manduca foolishly took off his shirt in celebration, which earned him the customary yellow card. A decision that almost proved costly later in the match. Both sides had their fair share of opportunities, but neither was able to score the rest of regulation, meaning this game was headed to extra time. In the extra time, Lyon kept the home crowd plenty nervous with an array of chances that went begging. Manduca made things even hairier for Apoel when he picked up his second yellow card, leaving the home side with only ten players on the pitch. However, Lyon was unable to take advantage, which meant the game was headed to penalty kicks. With the penalties level at 3-3, one player stepped up and made the difference, Apoel goalkeeper Dionissis Chiotis. Chiotis saved both of Lyon's last two shots by Alexandre Lacazette and Michel Batos to secure the victory for Apoel. The Cypriot side's historic run isn't over yet, as they are on to the quarterfinals.
Barcelona 10 Bayer Leverkusen 2
Barcelona left Germany up 3-1 following the first leg. All the home fans at Camp Nou felt confident of their side advancing, but I don't think any of them could have expected what took place. Lionel Messi and the home side put up video game numbers in what quickly turned into a humiliating affair. In a stretch of 59 minutes, Barca poured in seven goals, including five from Messi, a Champions League record. Bayer Leverkusen and goalkeeper Bernd Leno had no answer. Obviously, the Spanish conquistadors are into the quarterfinals.
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