Barcelona holds off Madrid rally

BARCELONA (AP) ― Pedro Rodriguez and Daniel Alves scored first-half goals, and Barcelona held off a spirited Real Madrid comeback attempt to eliminate the defending Copa del Rey champion with a 2-2 tie Wednesday night.

Following the ninth clasico between the rivals in nine months, Barcelona advanced to the semifinals on 4-3 aggregate and next plays Valencia or Levante.

Pedro entered in the 30th minute after Andres Iniesta limped off and put Barcelona ahead in the 43rd off a pass from Lionel Messi, who had drawn three defenders.

Barcelona doubled the lead in the 48th when a free kick by Xavi Hernandez, who was celebrating his 32nd birthday, went off Lassana Diarra and into the path of Alves, who sent a shot into the top far corner past the outstretched Iker Casillas.

Cristiano Ronaldo started the rally attempt in the 68th with his 30th goal of the season, running onto Mesut Oezil’s through ball and rounding goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto. Substitute Karim Benzema tied the score in 73rd.

England

Craig Bellamy’s second-half equalizer against his former club sent Liverpool into the League Cup final Wednesday as the Reds rallied twice for a 2-2 draw against Manchester City to put them through on aggregate.

The result means Liverpool, which held a 1-0 lead from the first leg, will play a cup final at Wembley for the first time in 16 years when it takes on Cardiff next month after holding off the Premier League leader at Anfield.

“It’s a great feeling, it’s been a while,” captain Steven Gerrard said.

Despite entering the second leg with a lead to protect, Liverpool came out attacking from the start ― only to see City take the lead twice against the run of play.

Italy

Edinson Cavani scored twice to lead Napoli over two-time defending champion Inter Milan 2-0 and into the Italian Cup semfinals.

Cavani converted a penalty kick in the 50th minute after being tripped by Thiago Motta in what could have been the Brazilian’s last game for Inter. Cavani added a goal in stoppage time.

Inter failed to reach the semifinals for the first time since 2003.