Osasuna strolled to a 1-0 victory over mighty Sevilla in this first leg tie; their main regret will be their inability to score more than once. The Pamplonans blew the league table into insignificance as they were superior in attack and attacking midfield, but their quality in front of goal was somewhat lacking. Sevilla lacked imagination and composure, even Dani Alves being somewhat quiet, but they did manage to hold off the brunt of the Osasuna with a decent defensive display, Poulsen bossing the midfield with superb ability.

Both teams fielded strong line-ups for this tie. Osasuna recognised it was their last chance of silverware, and started  with a full-strength front line, supported by Juanfran, Punal and man-of-the-match David Lopez. At the back, things were reasonably solid, Ricardo grabbing yet another European clean sheet. Sevilla were also nearly first choice. Javi Navarro had a constant battle on with Savo Milosevic, and perhaps came out the victor, as the defensive line was stretched. Navas was the main attacking protagonist on an evening when Kanoute and Luis Fabiano never really got going. Cobeno, once again a late stand-in for Palop, was to prove effective on goal.

There was a slow start to the tie. Poulsen was breaking up moves in midfield, and Osasuna, in front of a partisan and impatient home crowd, became niggly as they attempted to speed the game up, Milosevic inexplciably avoiding sanction for raising his arms to Poulsen. The Pamplonans did become the better side and had some great chances; David Lopez was in the thick of it and helped create opportunities such as that for Punal, while Raul Garcia brought out the best in Cobeno. Right on the stroke of half time, Cuellar, breaking forward, had a superb chance at the far post fater a free kick but the ball was hacked clear at the last minute. It was 0-0 at half time but Osasuna were clearly more comfortable as they slowly found their feet.

Minutes into the second half, an extremely rare Sevilla chance saw the ball in the Osasuna net, but it was chopped off for a blatant offside by Fabiano. And minutes later, Osasuna's promised goal finally came. Seconds after picking up a needless booking - and securing his suspension - Soldado rose to glance a header home from a rocket of a David Lopez free kick. It was an effective strike that left Sevilla stunned. The cards were starting to fly; Cuellar received a booking after objecting to Fabiano's apparent effort to stamp on him, and a full-scale melee broke out. But the football resumed: Osasuna maintained control of the game - that is, of course, until the referee left the pitch. Eric Braahaar retired from the match, injured, and Osasuna struggled to get their momentum back after the lengthy delay. Kerzhakov and then Hinkel came on for Sevilla; coach Ramos was doing his best to disorientate Osasuna by substituting and moving certain players into more attacking positions, but nothing could come of it as Osasuna continued closing them down. It was 1-0 at full-time, and Osasuna deserved even more.

The second leg, in Sevilla, is going to be tough for Osasuna, but they've shown time and time again that they can neutralise opposition in Europe. Whether Sevilla will be so impotent at home is up for debate, but the single-goal defict gives the Andalucians hope, and one wonders if they might just snatch the win - even with the distractions of La Liga on their minds.