Bundesliga clubs Hamburg and Werder Bremen are in a strong position to reach the UEFA Cup semi-finals with victories Thursday.
Hamburg recovered from conceding in the first minute to beat visiting Manchester City 3-1 in front of 57,000 fans at the HSH Nordbank Arena.
But a victory for Hamburg had looked unlikely when Stephen Ireland put the visitors in front after just 30 seconds, direct from the kickoff.
Hamburg were level shortly afterwards with defender Joris Mathijsen heading a Piotr Trochowksi corner past Shay Given and in at the far post.
Given kept his side in the game with some magnificent saves, but a handball by Micah Richards allowed Trochowski to stroke his side in front from the penalty spot.
Substitute José Paolo Guerrero made sure of the result 15 minutes later with a close-range finish that hit the back of the net before Given could even dive.
Hamburg's Bundesliga rivals Bremen also took a step towards the semi-finals thanks to a 3-1 win over Udinese.
Brazilian playmaker Diego opened the scoring on 34 minutes with a shot from the edge of the area and then scored against the run of play in the 67th when he curled a shot into the far top corner.
And just two minutes later, Bremen notched a third on the counter-attack as Hugo Almeida collected a long pass from Sebastian Boenisch, beat the offside trap and placed a low shot past Samir Handanovič.
But the Italian club's slim hopes of progress were kept alive when Fabio Quagliarella pulled one back in the 87th minute.
The away goal gives the Bianconeri a glimmer of hope for the return at the Stadio Friuli next Thursday.
In the first legs of the other quarterfinals, Shakhtar Donetsk beat visiting Olympique Marseille 2-0 and Dynamo Kiev tied 0-0 at Paris Saint-Germain.
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Hamburg recovered from conceding in the first minute to beat visiting Manchester City 3-1 in front of 57,000 fans at the HSH Nordbank Arena.
But a victory for Hamburg had looked unlikely when Stephen Ireland put the visitors in front after just 30 seconds, direct from the kickoff.
Hamburg were level shortly afterwards with defender Joris Mathijsen heading a Piotr Trochowksi corner past Shay Given and in at the far post.
Given kept his side in the game with some magnificent saves, but a handball by Micah Richards allowed Trochowski to stroke his side in front from the penalty spot.
Substitute José Paolo Guerrero made sure of the result 15 minutes later with a close-range finish that hit the back of the net before Given could even dive.
Hamburg's Bundesliga rivals Bremen also took a step towards the semi-finals thanks to a 3-1 win over Udinese.
Brazilian playmaker Diego opened the scoring on 34 minutes with a shot from the edge of the area and then scored against the run of play in the 67th when he curled a shot into the far top corner.
And just two minutes later, Bremen notched a third on the counter-attack as Hugo Almeida collected a long pass from Sebastian Boenisch, beat the offside trap and placed a low shot past Samir Handanovič.
But the Italian club's slim hopes of progress were kept alive when Fabio Quagliarella pulled one back in the 87th minute.
The away goal gives the Bianconeri a glimmer of hope for the return at the Stadio Friuli next Thursday.
In the first legs of the other quarterfinals, Shakhtar Donetsk beat visiting Olympique Marseille 2-0 and Dynamo Kiev tied 0-0 at Paris Saint-Germain.
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