Nigeria internationals Victor Moses and Mikel Obi watched from the bench as Chelsea beat Benfica 2:1 to win the 2012-13 Europa League title at the Amsterdam Arena on Wednesday night.

Fernando Torres opened scoring for the English side on 60 minutes, while defender Branislav Ivanovic headed home a dramatic late winner in stoppage time after Benfica's Oscar Cardoso had equalised from the spot in the 68th minute.

The Portuguese side created more chances and were arguably the better side for more of the game, but they will rue their poor finishing.

Moses had looked good for a start after stellar showings in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, scoring in all four legs to stir the Blues to the final.

Nigeria striker Victor Moses scored in his fourth straight Europa League game to help lift Chelsea to the final of the competition.

The 22-year-old struck his side's second goal as they battled from behind to beat FC Basel 3:1 after rising Egypt winger Mohamed Salah had given the Swiss visitors the lead on the stroke of half time.

The brilliant Salah looked to have given Basel a lifeline when his stunning curler beat Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech to level the aggregate score at 2:2, but with the English side having an away goals edge.

Fernando Torres then shot home from close range to level the score five minutes after the break. Moses made it 2:1 two minutes later after profiting from a deflected Torres shot, before a magnificent shot from Brazil star David Luiz sealed the win for Chelsea.

Nigeria forward Victor Moses scored the opening goal of the game for Chelsea as they beat hosts FC Basel 2:1 in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League semi-final tie on Thursday.

The Super Eagles star headed the Blues ahead in the 12th minute and they held the advantage until the 87th minute, when Fabian Schar equalised for the Swiss side from a controversial penalty.

Brazilian star David Luiz however snatched a last-gasp win for Chelsea from a free kick.

Egypt winger Mohamed Salah had a subdued performance for FC Basel and unable to impose himself as he did in the previous round against Tottenham Hotspur.

The Togo striker Emmanuel Adebayor has hit back at the critics who lambasted him for his poor penalty which cost Tottenham a place in the Europa League.

Tottenham crashed out of the competition on penalties in Basle on Thursday night after the tie ended 4-4 on aggregate after extra-time.

The Togolese took a strange, slow, stuttering run up and then cleared Basle keeper Yann Sommer's goal by a foot, before Marco Diaz went on to score to secure an easy 4-1 shootout win for Basle.

Adebayor's miss drew derision from all quarters, with fans and former players criticising the 29-year-old's spot-kick.

Rising Egypt winger Mohamed Salah was FC Basel's most dangerous player until his extra-time exit as they beat Tottenham 4:1 on penalties in the Europa League to reach their first European semi-finals.

The match had ended 2:2 at Sankt Jakob-Park to ensure a 4:4 aggregate score, with extra-time failing to produce any winners, albeit Salah's international team-mate Mohamed El-Nenni hit the woodwork.

Togo star Emmanuel Adebayor was among the Spurs players to miss from the spot when he skied his effort.

Salah and El-Nenni, both just 20 years old, put in monumental shifts for the Swiss champions, but it was the silky skills of Salah that had Tottenham wishing he was on their side.

Four Africans stars were on target for their clubs in Thursday night's Europa Cup quarter-finals first leg games.

Nigeria's Victor Moses, Senegal's Papiss Cisse, Togo's Emmanuel Adebayor and Pierre Webo of Cameroon all hit the back of the net.

Moses played 65 minutes of the game and blasted Chelsea's second goal into the top left in the 32nd minute as they beat Russian side Rubin Kazan 3:1.

Adebayor's effort into the roof of the net helped English side Tottenham fight back from 2:0 down to draw 2:2 with Swiss visitors FC Basel. Inspired in part by Egypt wing wizard Mohamed Salah, Basel raced to a 2:0 lead after just 34 minutes before Adebayor struck five minutes to the break.

Chelsea striker Demba Ba says he wants the club to focus on winning trophies rather than achieving a top-four finish which would secure Champions League qualification.

The Blues face Rubin Kazan in the last eight of the Europa League and have an FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City following their 1-0 victory over Manchester United on Monday.

And Ba says that, having never won a trophy in his career, he would rather pick up silverware than achieve a top-four finish because it is what players are remembered for.

"The top four is very important - but we want a trophy," Ba told reporters. "We are looking very good in two competitions, the Europa League and the FA Cup.

Senegal striker Papiss Demba Cisse headed home a last-gasp winner to give his side Newcastle United a 1:0 win over 10-man Anzhi Makhachkala in their Europa League last 16 tie on Thursday.

The win sent the Magpies through to the quarter-finals of the competition by the same aggregate scoreline after the first leg ended goalless.

The Russians, who lost Morocco midfielder Mehdi Carcela-Gonzalez to a second booking in the 55th minute, were led by legendary Cameroonian striker Samuel Eto'o who failed to work his usual magic when the occasion demanded.

In other games, Togo star Emmanuel Adebayor hustled home a vital extra time goal that sent his English club Tottenham to the last eight at the expense of Italian giants Inter Milan.

The 32-year-old is likely to bring up the milestone during his side's Europa League clash with Newcastle this week

Anzhi Makhachkala striker Samuel Eto’o is set to make his 100th European appearance against Newcastle at St James' Park on Thursday.

The Cameroon international is expected to start for the Russian side on Thursday in the first-leg of their last 16 Europa League clash, having scored 14 goals in 30 appearances this season.

“I’ve been lucky enough with my career and what I’ve done so far,” the former Barcelona and Inter man told Uefa.com.

Ogenyi Onazi has told MTNFootball.com he hopes Lazio win the Europa League after he scored in a 2-0 win at Stuttgart on Thursday.

Elated Nigeria international Onazi said his Italian club have their sights fixed on winning the second-tier Europa League this season as they look set to reach the quarterfinals of the competition after a first leg win in a Round of 16 clash against Stuttgart. 

"‎Our target is to reach the final and lift the trophy, but we must have to play as if all depends on us, and prays as if all depends on God," Onazi told MTNFootball.com

The club from Rome won the now rested European Cup Winners’ Cup in the 1998/99 season as well as the European Super Cup in 1999.