Valencia (Spain), Jan 18 (IANS): Valencia battled back from a deficit to prevail 2-1 over Alaves in the first leg of their Copa del Rey football quarter-final tie here.
The visitors got off to a fast start at the Mestalla, creating two solid scoring chances in the first five minutes on Wednesday, reports Efe.
The contest became more even as the first half wore on and Valencia gained an edge in possession, though Alaves remained positive as the teams went to the dressing rooms with the score knotted at 0-0.
Valencia increased their domination in the second half, but the first goal belonged to Alaves, courtesy of Ruben Soriano's blast in the 66th minute.
Gonçalo Guedes equalised for the home side in the 73rd minute and the outlook worsened for Alaves four minutes later, when Adrien Dieguez was sent off after picking up a second yellow card.
The hosts flew forward in numbers to capitalise on the man advantage and their reward came with eight minutes left in regulation on a shot by Rodrigo that deflected off the post into the Alaves net to make it 2-1 for Valencia.
Alaves will host Valencia next week in the second leg.