Shakhtar, Red Bull, Galatasaray advance in Europa League

CSKA Sofia coach Luboslav Penev left five players at home as punishment for visiting nightclubs last week but his stance helped ensure there was little to celebrate on the night of the club's 200th match in European competition.

The Swiss side led through Argentine midfielder Marcos Gelabert's 35th-minute goal before captain Alex Frei scored from the penalty spot after he was fouled.

Sofia captain Todor Yanchev pulled a goal back in the 61st, but Frei struck again in the 67th for his seventh goal in the inaugural Europa League.

Genoa drew level with Valencia in Group B after Sculli added to earlier goals by Rodrigo Palacio and Hernan Crespo, the Spanish side conceding two late goals to draw 2-2 at Slavia Prague.

Celtic's chances of advancing from Group C appear slim after Hamburg goalkeeper Frank Rost secured his team a 0-0 draw, keeping the Scottish side last and leaving Hamburg second to Hapoel Tel Aviv — a 3-0 winner at Rapid Vienna.

Ajax, a former European champion like Celtic, moved to the edge of qualification with Marko Pantelic and Denny de Zeeuw scoring for a 2-0 win at Dinamo Zagreb

The match was played behind closed doors as part of UEFA's punishment for fan violence during last month's match against Timisoara.

Anderlecht is through to the next phase, providing UEFA doesn't heed Dinamo's appeal against a three-point deduction. The Belgian side was level with Ajax on eight points in Group A.

Werder Bremen goalkeeper Tim Wiese kept his team going with saves from Milenko Acimovic and Zlatko Junuzovic before Tim Borowski and Hugo Almeida scored in the last nine minutes.

Werder, undefeated in all competitions since losing its opening Bundesliga match, tops Group L.

1|2

SharePrintEmail

Write a Comment

Terms

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos
 Respond to this email