After successive rounds of Europa League highlights, perhaps we should not have expected too much drama in the first leg of these quarter-final ties.
After all, this is where it starts to get serious; where eight clubs start to dream of potential glory and where genuine tension creeps into it.
Sure enough, there were elements of that and that will surely only increase as it remains all to play for ahead of next week’s second legs.
In fact, three of the ties remain deadlocked at 1-1.
One such contest came in the east end of London – an area starting to love the Europa League – where West Ham were playing in their first European quarter-final since 1981.
A night for the east end of the city to potentially savour; a game left-back Aaron Cresswell acknowledged before kick-off would be a new experience for most of the squad and was ‘arguably the biggest game of my career.’
Little did he know he would play such a pivotal role.
It was deep in first half injury time when he brought down Moussa Dembele near the edge of the box.
A foul undoubtedly but it was highly debatable whether the Frenchman had been denied a clear goalscoring chance.
So, the shock when Cresswell was shown a straight red card was palpable.
If anything, that merely fired up the hosts who struck first seven minutes after the restart when former Manchester City defender Jerome Boateng failed to control the ball and Jarrod Bowen nipped in to fire home via a deflection off the German.
That lead lasted 13 minutes as a man no stranger to the capital, Tanguy Ndombele, pounced to level matters when Alphonse Areola parried a cross from Lyon substitute Tete – the new arrival who was allowed to sign for the club outside of the transfer window due to a loophole.
From this moment on Lyon – now unbeaten in their past seven meetings with English clubs in Europe – were favourites but the 10-men of West Ham held out.
Next week’s second leg looks so delicately poised.
So does the game between Eintracht Frankfurt and Barcelona which also finished one-apiece.
Frankfurt, who dramatically ended the hopes of another Spanish club in the last 16 in the shape of Real Betis (thanks to a last minute own goal in extra time, took the lead shortly after half-time through a fine long-range strike from Ansgar Knauff.
That raised the prospect of a first Barcelona defeat since December until Ferran Torres combined with Frenkie de Jong to equalise with a low drive.
Like in London, the hosts were then reduced to 10 men with defender Tuta sent off, although Barca could not capitalise.
It’s clear to see why the Spanish side, now unbeaten in 22 games and rejuvenated under manager Xavi, will still be favourites to advance to the semi-finals and indeed are favourites with the SBOTOP Europa League betting odds to win the tournament – the one major European trophy missing from their collection.
Yet write Frankfurt off at your peril after this spirited showing.
Germany are the only country with more than one club in the quarter-finals – it has been a decade since two Bundesliga sides made it this far.
RB Leipzig remain in with a shout too, despite being held at home by Italians Atalanta – who were involved in two Champions League thrillers with Manchester United last autumn – in a contest in which both sides hit the woodwork twice.
Luis Muriel cut inside early on and rifled a superb opener into the top corner to give Atalanta the lead and the Colombian was only denied a second by the woodwork.
Fine goalkeeping from his team-mate Juan Musso kept the hosts at bay as he saved an Andre Silva spot-kick and also managed to palm away a follow-up header from Willi Orban.
However, the respite was brief as the shin of Davide Zappacosta diverted a cross into his own net moments later.
The winners of this tie will meet Braga or Rangers in the last four and it’s the former which holds the advantage after the first leg.
Abel Ruiz’s effort just before the break was the difference in front of a thunderous crowd as the youngest team left in competition, managed by former Sheffield Wednesday and Swansea City boss Carlos Carvalhal, secured a deserved win.
In fact, Rangers failed to register an effort on target against their highly-charged hosts.
The Scottish side knocked Braga out of the competition stage two seasons ago, coming from behind to win 3-2 in Glasgow before edging the contest in northern Portugal.
They will now need to overturn a deficit again if they are to become the first Scottish team since the Rangers side of 2008 to reach a major European semi-final.
On that occasion, the late great Walter Smith’s side went all the way to the final in the most dramatic fashion. How fans of the Gers would relish more European nights like that one.
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