Roma overcome Feyenoord in extra time to reach Europa League semifinals

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Stephan El Shaarawy and Lorenzo Pellegrini scored in extra time to earn hosts AS Roma a spot in the Europa League semifinals after defeating Dutch side Feyenoord Rotterdam 4-1 on Thursday for a 4-2 aggregate win.

El Shaarawy converted a cross from Tammy Abraham after 101 minutes and Pellegrini sealed the win seven minutes later when he slotted in a rebound from an Abraham shot.

After Feyenoord had won the quarterfinal first leg 1-0, Roma pushed for the opening goal from the start, missing two great opportunities in the first 10 minutes.

The visitors became more involved in the match, with Roma keeper Rui Patricio forced to deny Sebastian Szymanski from close range.

Immediately after half-time, Roma had an excellent chance when a cross found Pellegrini at the near post but his shot hit the post.

On the hour mark, roars of relief erupted around the Stadio Olimpico when Leonardo Spinazzola took advantage of a deflection within the box to poke the ball into the bottom corner.

Jose Mourinho started with key players Paulo Dybala and Abraham on the bench, after they suffered injuries early in the first leg, but he sent them on midway through the second half to chase a decider.

In the 80th minute, Brazilian Igor Paixao headed in an equaliser for the visitors, unmarked inside the box from a cross by Szymanski, only for Dybala to level the aggregate score one minute before stoppage time with a shot from a tricky angle.

Feyenoord striker Santiago Gimenez received a straight red card in the game's final moments for a knee-high tackle on Gianluca Mancini.

Roma will meet Bayer Leverkusen in the semifinals on May 11 and 18 after the German side knocked out Union Saint-Gilloise 5-2 on aggregate.