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Reigning Argentinian champions Estudiantes came back from a goal down to beat Guarani 2-1 in Paraguay in the Copa Libertadores.

A 44th-minute penalty goal by Pablo Caballero gave Guarani the lead but Estudiantes needed only eight minutes in the second half to turn the Group Seven match around.

Pablo Barrientos was assisted by Raul Iberbia before netting in the 50th minute – and three minutes later Leandro Gonzalez shot home from outside the box to set up the victory for Eduardo Berizzo’s team.

Estudiantes defender Gabriel Mercado said afterwards: “It was a very important match for us and this is a great victory. We managed to recover from the 5-0 defeat to Cruzeiro in the first matchday and two wins in a row means recovery is closer. Our first half form was very poor, but we managed to change our mind then.”

In Santiago, Venezuelan giants Caracas claimed a surprise 3-1 win in their trip to Chilean giants Universidad Catolica to take the lead in Group Four.

Four minutes were lethal for Catolica, as Luis Cabezas opened the scoring seconds after the half-time break before Nelson Barahona doubled the gap at the 48th.

In the 50th minute, Cabezas headed the ball into the back of the net to make it 3-0, before Pablo Calandria reduced the deficit three minutes later. Catolica defender Hans Martinez was dismissed in the 69th minute after fouling Edgar Jimenez.

Colombian side Junior remain unbeaten in Group Two following a 2-1 away win over Oriente Petrolero in Bolivia.

Victor Cortes put Junior ahead in the 27th minute and Luis Paez widened the gap two minutes into the second half, before Juan Carlos Arce replied for Oriente at the end.

A second half goal by Luis Aguiar gave Uruguayan giants Penarol a 1-0 triumph over Ecuador’s Liga Deportiva Universitaria in Montevideo.

Aguiar’s goal in the 57th minute put Penarol on top of Group Eight with six points, three more than Liga and Argentinian duo Independiente and Godoy Cruz.

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Everton must wait to discover the extent of Mikel Arteta’s hamstring injury after the influential midfielder was withdrawn early on in his side’s 1-1 draw with Birmingham.

Arteta, who was named captain for the game in the absence of Phil Neville, had to be substituted after sustaining the problem in a chase with Sebastian Larsson.

Asked how Arteta was, David Moyes said: “I don’t know, I just saw him come off. Obviously it looks like a hamstring injury but I haven’t had a chat with the medical team yet to see what they think.”

Moyes, who paid tribute to Arteta after his inspirational performance in the 2-1 win over Newcastle, felt the loss of the midfielder had made it difficult against Birmingham.

“It was a big blow for us because we needed some creativity and I knew that if we didn’t have him, we would be struggling to create too much,” Moyes said. “Leon Osman did, but we were struggling otherwise really to make anything happen.

“It was a bit frustrating. We didn’t play well enough probably to win the game, but we had a few half chances.”

Birmingham boss Alex McLeish praised his team’s resilience in securing a point that moved them out of the relegation zone.

Blues had taken a 17th-minute lead at Goodison Park through Jean Beausejour’s header but John Heitinga rifled in an equaliser ten minutes before the interval and the Toffees looked by far the more likely side to find a winner in the second half.

McLeish’s men held on for the 1-1 draw, though, taking them up to 17th in the table, with West Ham dropping into the bottom three.

“I think that is an apt way to describe it – a battling point,” McLeish said. “We started very brightly and got the opening goal. Then the players showed that tremendous resilience that they have.”

He added: “We tried to be a little bit more predatory, but we never really had the composure in terms of the passing in the second half, but sometimes you need to get points in an ugly fashion.”

Birmingham were forced into a substitution within the first ten minutes as David Bentley came off with what McLeish confirmed was a groin problem.

“He came in before the warm-up was finished saying that he felt a twinge but felt he could start, but clearly he wasn’t okay,” McLeish said. “So it will probably be a scan for him tomorrow and we’ll know the extent on Friday.”

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AC Milan boss Massimiliano Allegri felt his side had deserved to progress after the stalemate at Tottenham ended their Champions League campaign.

A 1-0 victory for Spurs at the San Siro, courtesy of a late counter-attack, proved decisive as Milan were unable to find a way through in the 0-0 draw at White Hart Lane.

“The team put in a fine performance tonight and I think over the two legs we deserved to go through,” Allegri said. “Unfortunately, that mistake in the first leg cost us dearly.

“This evening my Milan did everything it possibly could, showing intensity and technique. We only lacked something in the finishing.

“We created the chances with Robinho and Alexandre Pato, so there was nothing more we could do and I have to compliment these lads. This performance must give us more confidence going back into the Serie A race, as we have been improving for a while now.

“I still cannot be satisfied, as there is a great deal of bitterness at going out, but I am comforted by the way my lads fought.”

Zlatan Ibrahimovic struggled to provide a meaningful threat to the Spurs defence over the two legs but felt he had performed well.

“Over two legs Tottenham had one shot on goal and scored,” he said. “The best team doesn’t always win.

“I am satisfied with my performance and everyone in the team played well. I tried to score, but the ball would not cross the line. It’s a shame we went out of the Champions League, but we still have the Scudetto and Coppa Italia to focus on.”

Mathieu Flamini added: “We were here to earn qualification and it did not arrive, so we are sad, as we gave our all and the goal did not come.

“It’s a shame, but that is football. We spent the entire match in Tottenham’s half, looking for the goal. Everyone saw we played a great game with the right spirit.

“Now we must focus on Serie A and the race for the Scudetto. The Champions League was one of our objectives and we gave it our all, but now we will think about the title.”

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Michael Dawson felt Tottenham had shown a new side to their game after “winning ugly” in their 1-0 aggregate victory over AC Milan in the Champions League last 16.

Spurs had to survive several scares – including William Gallas’ goal-line clearance from Robinho in the first half – as Milan had the bulk of the possession in the second leg at White Hart Lane.

However, having won the first leg 1-0, the goalless draw at home proved sufficient to send Spurs into the quarter-finals and Dawson was delighted with the way his team-mates performed.

“Winning ugly? Definitely. The first half performance was back to walls, but we worked our socks off. Same in the second half. Look at it now – it’s rocking,” Dawson told ITV.

“Milan forced us to sit back. If you look at the players in our team, we’re very attacking, but we showed a different side to us tonight. We’ll enjoy tonight and see who we get in the quarter-final.”

Peter Crouch, who scored the decisive goal at the San Siro, also stressed the defensive efforts throughout the side.

“It’s huge. The club has never been in the Champions League before, then going to San Siro and winning, the lads defended magnificently tonight, great credit to them,” he said. “I’m really pleased and looking forward to the next round. That’s what it was all about.

“Sometimes in the Champions League you need to get results and that means defending from the front. We did that and I think over the two legs deserved to go through.”

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Edin Dzeko aims to get the better of a player he admires above all others and help steer Manchester City towards the quarter-finals of the Europa League on Thursday night.

The Bosnian striker is looking forward to pitting his wits against 34-year-old Andriy Shevchenko, who is now back at his first club Dynamo Kiev.

While Shevchenko made a name for himself in Italy with AC Milan, he failed to replicate his excellent form at Chelsea, scoring just nine goals in 47 appearances. But that has not dimished him in Dzeko’s eyes as a player of top quality. The former Wolfsburg striker, however, is aiming to have better luck in England.

Dzeko, 24, said: “Shevchenko was always my favourite player. He was my idol. I met him a few years ago when Wolfsburg played Milan and we exchanged shirts. He was a fantastic player, he had some tough times in England but that’s football. England is very different from other leagues and I’ll have to get used to it. Hopefully I’ll have a lot of success.”

Dzeko’s only goals since arriving in the January transfer window have come in cup competitions, not the Premier League. And he could return to the team in the last-16 first leg meeting after having to settle for a place on the bench in the victory against Wigan at the weekend. Manager Roberto Mancini opted instead for a partnership of Carlos Tevez and summer signing Mario Balotelli. Dzeko does not mind who he plays alongside.

He said: “It’s not only Carlos Tevez, Mario Balotelli is a great player and the coach has been playing all of us. We have to get used to each other in different games. I think we’ll have a lot of success together.”

Mancini said: “These three strikers can play together somestimes but not always. When they do it’s important that they work. As for Edin it is not easy to start with a new team in a new league in January but I believe he will become one of the best strikers in England.”

Shaun Wright-Phillips could come into contention after missing two games with a back problem. Nigel de Jong, who has recovered from an ankle injury, is pushing for his first start in over a month. James Milner is absent with a hamstring strain while Kolo Toure is banned indefinitely after failing a drugs test.

Mancini said: “Kolo is a serious professional player. We said one week ago that we want to win games for him.”

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