MADRID, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- Inaki Williams, fresh off a plane from African Cup of Nations duty, propelled Athletic Bilbao into the semifinals of the Copa del Rey with a 4-2 win over FC Barcelona on Wednesday night.

The elder Williams brother made a rapid return to Spain's Basque region from Ghana, boarding a plane to Paris just two hours after Ghana's tournament exit was confirmed.

About 12 hours later, he scored the crucial goal that put Athletic ahead 3-2 in the first period of extra time, paving the way for their fifth consecutive Copa del Rey semifinal appearance.

The forward executed a play initiated by Oihan Sancet and Asier Villalibre and fired past Barca goalkeeper Inaki Pena. Although the ball rebounded off the post, Williams remained composed to slot the rebound into the empty net.

His younger brother, Nico, secured Athletic's win with a fourth goal in the final minute, as Ernesto Valverde's team rallied after trailing by one goal at halftime.

The game was barely a minute old when Athletic opened the scoring. Gorka Guruzeta found the net from about 10 yards after the ball ricocheted around the Barca area.

Guruzeta nearly scored again minutes later, before Barca started to dominate possession, seeking to wrest control from the home side.

Although Barca struggled to create chances, Robert Lewandowski capitalized on a defensive blunder by Athletic. Yuri Berchiche's attempted clearance inadvertently bounced off Lewandowski and into the net.

Lamine Yamal then gave Barca the lead with an impressive solo effort, receiving the ball wide, cutting inside, and firing a powerful shot into the far corner.

Sancet had a chance for Athletic from a corner, but his shot was directly at Pena.

Nico Williams, who had a lackluster first half, provided a precise cross in the 49th minute for Sancet to equalize at 2-2.

Unai Gomez, introduced at halftime, energized the home side, who narrowly missed a third goal with headers from him and Sancet, and a curling shot from Williams just wide.

While Athletic dominated, Barca had the better chances, both falling to Yamal, who missed one-on-one with goalkeeper Julen Agirrezabala and failed to score after rounding the keeper with an open goal.

Inaki Williams' extra-time goal justified the expense of the private jet that brought him back, leaving Barca's season in disarray.

In the other quarterfinal, Mallorca stunned La Liga leaders Girona with a 3-0 lead in just 35 minutes.

Cyle Larin opened the scoring after 21 minutes, followed by Abdon Prats doubling the lead in the 28th minute and converting a penalty seven minutes later.

Girona's comeback hopes were ignited in the 67th minute when Antonio Raillo received two quick yellow cards, reducing Mallorca to 10 men. Stuani converted the ensuing penalty to make it 3-1.

Savio scored a second for Girona in the 96th minute, but Mallorca narrowly held on for a significant victory. Enditem

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