Home Wins For Belenenses and Boavista

Two games were played Saturday in the Portuguese Super Liga:

At Lisbon:

Eduardo Dady's tally at 16 minutes provided the score of a match that saw homestanding Belenenses climb up to fourth place in the league standings with their 1-0 win over relegation-threatened Deportivo Aves.

At Porto:

Roland Linz twice tallied (59', 73') to help lift Boavista to a 3-1 home win over Pacos Ferreira.

PSV Held To Road Draw With NAC Breda; King's Army Continue Climb; AZ Up To Second

Three Saturday contests took place in the Dutch Eredivisie:

At Breda:

Jefferson Farfan's equalizer at 74 minutes allowed league-leading PSV Eindhoven to salvage a 1-1 road deadlock with NAC Breda.

At Tilburg:

Anouar Hadouir's tally (23') was the lone goal as Willem II Tilburg all but assured themselves of another season in the top flight of Dutch soccer with their 1-0 home win over NEC Nijmegen.

At Alkmaar:

AZ Alkmaar moved into second place in the Eredivisie standings, five points behind frontrunning PSV, thanks to their 2-0 home blanking of relegation-threatened RKC Waalwijk. Shota Arveladze (24') and Julian Jenner (77') provided AZ with the goals.

Old Firm Clubs Fit To Be Tied; 2-0 Home Wins For Falkirk and Motherwell; Aberdeen Still In Hunt For CL Spot

Five games were played Saturday in the Scottish Premier League:

At Dundee:

Jon Daly equalizer during second-half stoppage time lifted Dundee United to a 1-1 home draw, further setting back visiting Celtic's plans for wrapping up the league title.

At Glasgow:

Craig Dargo's equalizer (82') enabled Inverness Caledonian Thistle to gain a 1-1 road draw against second-place Rangers. Caley Thistle picked up two wins and a draw this league season against 'Jers.

At Kilmarnock:

James Fowler's own goal (59) combined with Russell Anderson's tally (69') lifted Aberdeen to a 2-1 road win over Kilmarnock and set the Dons five points in back of Rangers for the SPL's second Champions League berth.

At Falkirk:

Pedro Moutinho (20') and Stephen O'Donnell (40') provided the scoring to propel Falkirk to a 2-0 home win over second-bottom St. Mirren.

At Motherwell:

Scott McDonald's double (PK-51', 62') provided all the scoring as Motherwell dealt visiting---and relegation-threatened---Dunfermline a critical 2-0 setback.

Marseille Foiled

At Lorient:

In the only Ligue 1 match on Saturday, Rafik Saifi (60') and Ulrich Le Pen (74') each scored once at Lorient held off Marseille 2-1, preventing the guests from climbing up to third place in the league standings.

Big Home Win For Bayern Over Schalke

Six games were contested Saturday in the German Bundesliga:

At Munich:

Bayern Munich, thanks to goals from Roy Makaay (3', his 100th with Bayern) and Hasan Salihamidzic (78'), knocked off league-leading Schalke 04 at home 2-0 to draw within six points of the Royal Blues.

At Cottbus:

Energie Cottbus prevented visiting Werder Bremen from taking over first place in the Bundesliga standings by holding the second-place club to a 0-0 stalemate.

At Stuttgart:

VfB Stuttgart, thanks to goals from Marco Streller (29'), Benjamin Lauth (75'), and Jeronimo Cacau (84'), defeated visiting Alemania Aachen 3-1 to stay ahead of Bayern Munich in third place, and close withing four points of table-topping Schalke.

At Nuremberg:

Tomas Galasek (4') and Marco Engelhardt (60') provided the scoring that lifted FC Nurnberg to a 2-1 home win over Hertha Berlin as the hosts are gunning for a shot at a UEFA Cup berth.

At Mainz:

Sergej Barbarez tallied twice (41', 44') to help keep Bayer Leverkusen in fifth place (a UEFA Cup berth) as the Lions defeated Mainz on the road, 3-1.

At Mochengladbach:

Federico Insua's equalizer (89') enabled cellar-dwelling Borussia Mochengladbach to gain a 1-1 home deadlock with Eintrach Frankfurt.

Milan and Roma Draw; Siena Top Reggina

Two games populated Saturday's schedule in Italy's Serie A:

At Rome:

Alberto Gilardino's equalizer (61') enabled AC Milan to gain a 1-1 road draw with second-place AS Roma.

At Reggio di Calabria:

Valerio Bertotto's goal at 45 minutes proved decisive as AC Siena picked up a 1-0 road win at Reggina's expense.

Barca Alone On Top----For Now

Four games were contested on Saturday in Spain's Premiera Division:

At Barcelona:

Leo Messi (45') and Samuel Eto'o (51') provided the scoring for Barcelona as the defending league champs held off visiting Deportivo La Coruna 2-1.

At Valencia:

Thanks to goals courtesy of David Villa (12'), Vicente Rodriguez (26'), and Miguel Angulo (59'), homestanding Valencia climbed up to third place in the La Liga standings following their 3-2 win over Espanyol.

At San Sebastian:

Jon Ansotegui provided the lone goal of the match (38') to lift Real Sociedad to a 1-0 home win over Levante and climb out of the La Liga basement.

At Seville:

In a match played at a neutral site because of the Real Betis three-home-match ban stemming from the actions of a few hooligans at a home Copa Del Ray match, The Verdiblancos, thanks to Juanito's 90th-minute equalizer, gained a 3-3 draw with Villarreal.

Red Devils and Blues Keep Pace; Reds Bomb Gunners; Addicks Closing In On Getting Out Of Drop Zone

Eight games populated the Saturday English Premier League calendar:

At Manchester:

After trailing 1-0 at halftime, Manchester United erupted for four second half goals to clobber visiting Blackburn 4-1. Paul Scholes (61') , Michael Carrick (73') , Ji-Sung Park (83') , and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (90') tallied for the league leaders.

At Watford:

Chelsea remained six points behind Manchester United following their 1-0 road win over basement-occupying Watford. Salomon Kalou's goal during the second minute of second-half stoppage time was the difference for the Blues.

At Liverpool:

Peter Crouch's hat trick (4', 35', 81') enabled Liverpool to take over third place in the Premiership standings following their 4-1 mauling of visiting Arsenal.

At London:

Darren Bent's successful penalty kick (86') provided the game's only goal as Charlton Athletic closed to within one point of safety following the Addicks' 1-0 home win over Wigan Athletic.

At Bolton:

Kevin Davies provided the only goal (80) of a match that saw Bolton tighten their hold on a UEFA Cup berth (and close within five points of Arsenal for a shot at the UEFA Champions League) with their 1-0 home win over sliding Sheffield United, leaving the Blades only one point above the relegation zone.

At London:

Bobby Zamora (2') and Carlos Tevez (45') provided the goals as West Ham United defeated visiting Middlesbrough 2-0 to close to within five points of safety.

At London:

An injured Ian Pierce scored the equalizer at 90 minutes to lift Fulham to a 1-1 home draw with Portsmouth.

At Newcastle:

Emile Mpenza scored the only goal of the match at 80 minutes, as Manchester City picked up a key win to remain six points above the drop zone with their 1-0 road win over Newcastle United.

FC Groningen Climbing After Road Win Over Roda JC

At Kerkrade,

Goran Lovre scored the lone goal (37') of FC Groningen's 1-0 road win over Roda JC Kerkrade, allowing the guests to climb up to ninth place (a playoff berth for a shot at going to the UEFA Cup) in the standings in Friday's only Dutch Eredivisie match.

Bielefeld Up From Drop Zone

At Bielefeld:

Sub Jonas Kamper was the hero as his 79th-minute score lifted Arminia Bielefeld out of the relegation zone---and dropped Borussia Dortmund into it---by beating the aforementioned guests 1-0 in Friday's lone German Bundesliga match.

Team USA and Guatemala: Fit To Be Tied

At Frisco, Texas:

The United States and visiting Guatemala ended their Wednesday night exhibition match stalemated at 0-0.

More EURO 2008 Qualifiers

Qualifying for next year's European championships continued on Wednesday:

GROUP A:

At Baku, Azerbaijan:

Emin Imameliev scored the game's lone goal at 83 minutes to lead Azerbaijan to a 1-0 home victory over Finland.

At Kielce, Poland:

Maciej Zurawski scored the lone goal (26') in Poland's 1-0 home win over Armenia.

At Belgrade, Serbia:

Visting Portugal and Serbia battled to a 1-1 draw. Tiago put the Portuguese ahead with his goal (5'), only to see Serbia's Bosko Jankovic tie it up at 37 minutes.

STANDINGS, with the number of games played in parentheses, followed by the point total.

1. Poland (7), 16 points
2. Portugal (6), 11
3. Serbia (6), 11
4. Finland (6), 11
5. Belgium (6), 7
6. Kazakhstan (6), 5
7. Azerbaijan (6), 4
8. Armenia (5), 1



GROUP B:

At Odessa, Ukraine:

Oleh Gusev knocked in the only goal of the match (47') as Ukraine defeated visiting Lithuania 1-0.

At Tbilisi, Georgia:

Aleksandr Iashvili scored twice (46', 90'+5) to help lead Georgia to a 3-1 triumph over the Faroe Islands.

At Bari, Itlay:

Italy defated visiting Scotland 2-0 as Luca Toni scored both goals (12', 70').

STANDINGS:

1. Ukraine (5), 12 points
2. Scotland (6), 12
3. France (5), 12
4. Italy (5), 10
5. Georgia (6), 6
6. Lithuania (5), 4
7. Faroe Islands (6), 0



GROUP C:

At Budapest:

Hungary, thanks to goals courtesy of Tamas Priskin (9') and Zoltan Gera (63'), blanked visiting Moldova 2-0.

At Ta 'Qali, Malta:

Angelos Basinas' successful penalty kick (66') provided the lone score as Greece defeated homestanding Malta 1-0.

At Frankfurt, Germany:

In a game played behind closed doors, Hamil Altintop's second-half double (72', 90') enabled Turkey to storm back from two goals down to gain a 2-2 deadlock with Norway.

STANDINGS:

1. Turkey (5), 13 points
2. Greece (5), 12
3. Bosnia-Herzegovina (5), 7
4. Norway (5), 7
5. Hungary (5), 6
6. Malta (5), 4
7. Moldova (6), 2



GROUP D:

At Liberec, Czech Republic:

Radoslav Kovac provided the only goal (22') in the Czech Republic's 1-0 home win over Cyprus.

At Dublin:

Thanks to Kevin Doyle's tally at 13 minutes, the Republic of Ireland defeated visiting Slovakia 1-0.

At Cardiff, Wales:

Goals from Ryan Giggs (3'), Gareth Bale (20'), and Jason Koumas (PK-63') propelled Wales to a 3-0 home whitewashing of San Marino.

STANDINGS:

1. Germany (5), 13 points
2. Czech Republic (6), 13
3. Republic of Ireland (6), 10
4. Slovakia (6), 9
5. Wales (5), 6
6. Cyprus (6), 4
7. San Marino (4), 0

GROUP E:

At Tel-Aviv, Israel:

17 year-old sub Ben Sahar scored twice (77', 80') to help salt away Israel's easy 4-0 home fistbeating of Estonia.

At Barcelona, Spain:

Steven Gerrard scored twice (54', 76') and David Nugent added another (90'+2) as England busted open a scoreless deadlock to down Andorra 3-0.

STANDINGS:

1. Croatia (5), 13 points
2. Israel (6), 11
3. Russia (5), 11
4. England (6), 11
5. Macedonia (6), 7
6. Estonia (5), 0
7. Andorra (5), 0

GROUP F:

At Vaduz, Liechenstein:

Mario Frick scored the lone goal (17') as Liechenstein picked up only their second win UEFA European Championship soccer, a 1-0 home win at Latvia's expense.

At Belfast, Northern Ireland:

David Healy's double (31', 58') lifted Northern Ireland to a 2-1 come-from-behind home victory over Sweden, propelling the hosts into first place in Group F.

At Mallorca, Spain:

Andres Iniesta provided all the scoring--one goal (81)---as Spain defeated visiting Iceland 1-0.

STANDINGS:

1. Northern Ireland (6), 13 points

2. Sweden (5), 12

3. Spain (5), 9

4. Denmark (4), 7

5. Latvia (4), 3

6. Liechenstein (5), 3

7. Iceland (5), 3

GROUP G:

At Sofia, Bulgaria:

Visiting Albania and Bulgaria battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

At Piatra Neamt, Romania:

Adrian Mutu (26'), Cosmin Contra(56'), Ciprian Marica (90') provided the firepower to lift Romania to a 3-0 home beating of hapless Luxembourg.

At Celje, Slovenia:

Giovanni van Bronckhorst provided the only goal at 86 minutes to lift the Netherlands to a 1-0 road win over Slovenia.

STANDINGS:

1. Netherlands (6), 14 points

2. Romania (5), 11

3. Bulgaria (5) , 9

4. Belarus (5), 7

5. Slovenia (5), 4

6. Albania (5), 3

7. Luxembourg (5), 0

Saturday Results For EURO 2008 Qualifying

Here's a recap of Saturday action in qualifying for next year's European championships:

GROUP A:

At Warsaw:

Five different goal scorers lifted Poland to a 5-0 home brassknuckling of Azerbaijan, lifting the hosts to first place in Group A.

At Almaty, Kazakhstan:

Kairat Ashirbekov (47') and Nurbol Zhumaskaliyev (61') provided the scoring as homestanding Kazakhstan picked up their first competitive victory since joining UEFA, 2-1 over Serbia.

At Lisbon:

Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice (55', 75') to help guide Portugal to a 4-0 home fistbeating of Belgium.

STANDINGS (the first number is the number of matches played, the second is the number of points):

1. Poland, 6 games played, 13 points; 2. Finland, 5 and 11; 3. Portugal, 5 and 10; 4. Serbia, 5 and 10; 5. Belgium, 6 and 7; 6. Kazakhstan, 6 and 5;
7. Armenia, 4 and 1; 8. Azerbaijan, 5 and 1.



GROUP B:

At Glasgow:

Craig Beattie's game winner at 89 minutes lifted Scotland to a 2-1 home win over Georgia.

At Toftir, Faroe Islands:

Thanks to goals from Volodymyr Yezerskiy (20') and Oleh Gusev (57'), Ukraine defeated the Faroe Islands on the road 2-0.

At Kaunas, Lithuania:

Nicolas Anelka scored the lone goal (73') in France's 1-0 road win over Lithuania.

STANDINGS:

1. Scotland and France each with 5 games played and 12 points; 3. Ukraine, 4 and 9; 4. Italy, 4 and 7; 5. Lithuania, 4 and 4; 6. Georgia, 5 and 3; 7. Faroe Islands, 5 and 0.





GROUP C:

At Chisinau, Moldova:

Alexandru Epureanu's equalizer (85') enabled Moldova to salvage a 1-1 home draw with Malta, denying the visitors' hopes of winning an unprecedented (for them) a second straight win in group play.

At Oslo, Norway:

First half goals from Zvjezden Misimovic (18') and Zlatan Muslimovic (33') ignited Bosnia-Herzegovina to a 2-1 road win over Norway.

At Athens:

After giving up the game's first goal, four different goal scorers each tallied once to give Turkey a stunning 4-1 road win over Greece.

STANDINGS:

1. Turkey 4 games played and 12 points; 2. Greece, 4 and 9 ; 3. Bosnia-Herzegovina, 5 and 7; 4. Norway, 4 and 6; 5. Malta, 4 and 4; 6. Hungary, 4 and 3; 7. Moldova, 5 and 2.





GROUP D:

At Dublin:

Before more than 72,000 fans, hosts Ireland defeated Wales 1-0 as Stephen Ireland, at 39 minutes, scored the game's only goal.

At Nicosia, Cyprus:

Second-half goals from Robert Vittek (54'), Martin Skrtel (67'), and Martin Jakubko (77') enabled the visiting Slovakia to bounce back from a 1-0 halftime deficit to defeat Cyprus 3-1.

At Prague:

Kevin Kuranyi scored twice (42', 62') to help lead Germany to a 2-1 road win over the Czech Republic.

STANDINGS:

1. Germany, 5 games played and 13 points; 2. Czech Republic, 5 and 10; 3. Republic of Ireland, 6 and 10; 4. Slovakia, 5 and 9; 5. Cyprus, 5 and 4; 6. Wales, 4 and 3; 7. San Marino, 4 and 0.

GROUP E:

At Zagreb, Croatia:

Goals from Darijo Srna (58') and Eduardo da Silva (87') enabled Croatia to come from a one-goal halftime deficit to defeat visiting Macedonia 2-1.

At Tel-Aviv, Israel:

England and hosts Israel battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

At Tallinn, Estonia:

It was the Aleksandr Kerzhakov show as he scored twice (66', 78') in the second half to propel Russia to a 2-0 road win over Estonia.

STANDINGS:

1. Croatia, 5 games played with 13 points; 2. Russia, 5 and 11; 3. England, 5 and 8; 4. Israel, 5 and 8; 5. Macedonia, 6 and 7; 6. Estonia, 4 and 0; 7. Andorra, 4 and 0.

GROUP F:

At Vaduz, Liechtenstein:

David Healy's hat trick (52', 74', 83') helped break open a scoress deadlock and propelled Northern Ireland to a 4-1 road win over Liechenstein.

At Madrid:

Fernando Morientes (34') and David Villa (45'+1) provided enough scoring to enable Spain to hold off visiting Denmark 2-1.

STANDINGS:

1. Sweden, 4 games played with 12 points; 2. Northern Ireland, 5 and 10; 3. Denmark, 4 and 7; 4. Spain, 4 and 6; 5. Latvia, 3 and 3; 6. Iceland, 4 and 3; 7. Liechenstein, 4 and 0.

GROUP G:

At Luxembourg City:

Belarus, thanks to goals from Timofei Kalachev (25') and Vitali Kutuzov (54'), held on for a 2-1 road win over Luxembourg.

At Shkoder, Albania:

Visiting Slovenia and Albania battled to a soggy 0-0 draw.

At Rotterdam, Netherlands:

Romania and hosts Netherlands battled to a 0-0 deadlock.

STANDINGS:

1. Netherland, 5 games played netting 11 points; 2. Bulgaria, 4 and 8; 3. Romania, 4 and 8; 4. Belarus, 5 and 7; 5. Slovenia, 4 and 4; 6. Albania, 4 and 2; 7. Luxembourg, 4 and 0.

The top two teams in each group would join hosts Austria and Switzerland in Euro 2008.

Winning Ways For Team USA Continued Thanks To Landon Donovan

At Tampa, Florida:

It was the Landon Donovan show as the Los Angeles Galaxy star popped in a hat trick (1', 66', 76') to lead the United States to a 3-1 win over visiting Ecuador in an exhibition match on Sunday at Raymond James Stadium. The Americans are 3-0 under interim head coach Bob Bradley.

Braga Top Naval To Climb To Fourth

At Braga:

Ze Carlos da Silva scored the game winner on a successful penalty kick (86') to lead Sporting Braga up to fourth place in the Portuguese Super Liga standings following their 2-1 home win over Naval in the lone Tuesday BwinLiga contest.

Benifica Within One Point Of League Lead After Road Win

At Amadora:

In Monday's sole Portuguese Super Liga match, Armando Petit's goal (80') was the only score of SL Benfica's 1-0 road win over Estrela Amadora, placing the second-place Eagles one point in back of first-place FC Porto.

Hopes For Manchester United-Chelsea FA Cup Final At New Wembley Still Alive As Red Devils and Blues Win Quarterfinal Replays

Two quarterfinal-round replays were conducted Monday as England's FA Cup tournament continued:

At Manchester:

Cristiano Ronaldo's successful penalty kick in the 76th minute was the game's only goal as Machester United defeated Middlesbrough 1-0 to set up a semifinal-round encounter with Premiership basement-residing Watford.

At London:

Second-half tallies from Andriy Shevchenko (55') and Shawn Wright-Phillips (61') enabled Chelsea to hold off homestanding Tottenham Hotspur 3-2 to set up a semifinal-round matchup with Blackburn.

A Belenenses Road Win And Three Draws

Four games populated the Portuguese Super Liga schedule on Sunday:

At Pacos de Ferreira:

Candido Costa (45') and Eduardo Dady (78') provided all the scoring as Belenenses climbed up to fourth place with their 2-0 road win over Pacos Ferreira.

At Vila Das Aves:

Filipe Teixeira's goal at 90 minutes lifted Academica de Coimbra to a 2-2 road draw with basement-occupying Deportivo das Aves.

At Aveiro:

Antonin Alcatraz notch his equalizer at 90 minutes to lift relegation-threatened Beira Mar to a 2-2 home draw with Maritimo.

At Leiria:

Kwame Ayew's equalizer at 90 minutes lifted Vitoria Setubal to a 1-1 road stalemate with Uniao Leiria.

Ajax Belt PSV; Sunday Win For Utrecht, Too; Three Draws

Five games took place in the Dutch Eredivisie on Sunday:

At Eindhoven:

Ajax Amsterdam, in part powered by Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's double (17', 72'), moved into second place, five points behind PSV Eindhoven, by belting the league leaders on the road, 5-1.

At Utrecht:

FC Utrecht, with goals from Francis Dickoh (20') and Tom Caluwe (51'), blanked visiting Vitesse Arnhem 2-0.

At Groningen:

Luis Suarez provided the equalizer (70') to lift FC Groningen to a 1-1 home deadlock with Champions league hopefuls FC Twente Enschede.

At Rotterdam:

Willem II Tilburg held hosts Feyenoord Rotterdam to their fourth consecutive draw, 0-0.

At Almelo:

SC Heracles Almelo climbed out of the relegation-playoff zone by holding AZ Alkmaar to a 0-0 draw, dropping the guests down to third place in the Eredivisie standings.

Falkirk Stun Celtic

At Falkirk:

In Sunday's only match in the Scottish Premier league, Steven Thomson's goal at 16 minutes was all the offense as Falkirk ended their eight-game losing streak by shocking league-leading Celtic 1-0 at home.

Auxerre Top Lens; Another Setback For PSG

Two games were played on Sunday in France's Ligue 1:

At Auxerre:

Thomas Kahlengberg scored the lone goal of the match (17') as AJ Auxerre knocked off second-place Lens at home 1-0.

At Rennes:

Jimmy Briand's goal (76') was the only tally of a match that saw Rennes continue the recent domestic misery of visiting--and relegation-threatened---Paris Saint Germain, 1-0.

Home Shutout Wins For Leverkusen (Up To Fifth Place) and Bremen (Within Three Points Of Top Spot)

Two games were contested Sunday in Germany's Bundesliga:

At Leverkusen:

Andriy Voronin was the man as he scored the game's only goal one minute into second-half stoppage time, leading Bayer Leverkusen into fifth place (a UEFA Cup berth) as the hosts defeated basement occupants Borussia Mochengladbach.

At Bremen:

Werder Bremen kept pace with frontrunning Schalke following their 2-0 home win over Mainz. Jurica Vranjes (60') and Diego (90') provided the scoring.

Both Milan Clubs Win; Lazio Up To Third; Reggina Out Of Drop Zone

Nine games populated Sunday's Italian Serie A schedule:

At Ascoli:

Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored twice (65', 73') as league-leading Inter Milan remained unbeaten following their 2-1 home win over Ascoli. The defeat dropped The Woodpecker into the Serie A basement.

At Milan:

AC Milan climbed to fifth place in the standings, thanks to their 1-0 home win over Atalanta. Massimo Ambrosini provided the game' only goal (40').

At Rome:

With goals from Goran Pandev (8'), Tommaso Rocchi (27'), and Christian Manfredini (74'), Lazio took over third place in the standings with their convincing 3-1 home win over Empoli (who dropped to sixth).

At Rimini:

In a match that was scoreless at halftime, Reggina erupted for four goals (from four different players) to hammer exiled Catania Calcio 4-1. The win lifted the Amorontos out of the relegation zone. The Elephants played this game , originally set for their home grounds (Angelo Massimino Stadium in Catania), at a neutral site, behind closed doors.

At Florence:

Second place AS Roma fell 18 points behind Inter Milan following their 0-0 road deadlock with Fiorentina.

At Messina:

Thanks to goals courtesy of Roberto Muzzi (26'), Alessandro Rosina (PK-77'), and Roberto Stellone (85'), Torino moved further away from the drop zone with their 3-0 whitewashing on the road at the expense of relegation-threatened Messina.

At Cagliari:

Chievo Verona defeated homestanding Cagliari Calcio 2-0, thanks to goals from Matteo Brighi (50') and Erjon Bogdani (55')

At Parma:

Andrea Gassbaroni's goal at 19 minutes held up as relegation zone residents Parma picked up a 1-0 home win over AC Siena.

At Udine:

Udinese blasted visiting Livorno 4-0, with Antonio Di Natale scoring twice (34', 69').

Big Wins For Real Madrid and Sevilla

Six games were played Sunday in the Spanish Premiera Division:

At Madrid:

Robinho scored what proved to be the game winner (56') as Real Madrid defeated visiting (and relegation-threatened) Gimnastic de Tarragona 2-0. The victory enabled Los Blancos to climb up to third place in the La Liga standings.

At Seville:

Second-half goals from Frederic Kanoute (PK-52') and Alexander Kerzhakov (90') lifted Sevilla to a 2-0 home win over struggling Celta Vigo and lifted the hosts to a first-place tie with Barcelona (though Barca have the tiebraking advantage of the better goal differential).

At Coruna:

Antonio Barragan's goal (80'), the only one of the match, lifted 10-man Deportivo La Coruna a 1-0 home win over Getafe.

At Barcelona:

In the contest between sturggling Levante and homestanding Espanyol that ended stalemated at 1-1, both goals were scored in the first half. Levante's Gustavo Reggi (13') gave the visitors the early lead, only to see Luis Garcia equalize (19') for the Parakeets.

At Zaragoza:

Real Zaragoza extended their unbeaten streak in league competition to five games as Diego Milito's tally (20') lifted the hosts to a 1-0 win over Atletico Madrid.

At Villarreal:

Josico's equalizer (59') enabled Villarreal to gain a 1-1 home stalemate with visiting bottom club Real Sociedad.

Toffees Sink Gunners At End; Addicks Get Key Win; Reds and Villa Draw

Three Sunday matches were contested in the English Premier League:

At Liverpool:

Andy Johnson scored the game winner during second-half stoppage time as Everton climbed to sixth place in the EPL standings following their home victory over Arsenal.

At London:

Zheng Zhi (53') and Jerome Thomas (PK-88') provided the offensive punch as Charlton Athletic climbed within four points of safety following their 2-0 home blanking of Newcastle United.

At Birmingham:

Aston Villa prevented visiting Liverpool from taking over third place in the Premiership by holding the Reds to a 0-0 draw.

Big Win For Sporting On Road Over Porto

At Porto:

Rodrigo Tello scored the game's only goal at 72 minutes, lifting Sporting Club Portugal to a 1-0 road triumph over league-leading FC Porto in the only Saturday match in the Portuguese Super Liga. The Lions now move to within two points of second-place SL Benfica, and six of the leaders.

Excelsior Out Of Relegation Playoff Zone; Heerenveen Closer To Champions League Playoff Berth; ADO Woes Continue

Three Saturday contests took place in the Dutch Eredivisie:

At Nijmegen:

Andwele Slory scored the game lone goal (39') as Excelsior won on the road, beating NEC Nijmegen 1-0, and climbed out of the relegation-playoff zone.

At Heerenveen:

SC Heerenveen, thanks to a hat trick from Afonso Alves (9', 39', 63'), held off NAC Breda (whose Glen Salmon scored twice, at 29 and 82 minutes) 3-2 to draw within one point of a place in the playoff for a Champions League qualifying berth.

At The Hague:

Sjaak Polak's double (PK-36', 43') helped lead visiting Sparta Rotterdam to a 4-2 doubling of basement occupants ADO Den Haag, crippling the hosts' hopes of staying in the Eredivisie next season.

Rangers Tighten Hold On Second Place; Dunfermline Closing In On Safety; Tangerines Stun Jambos

Three games were contested in the Scottish Premier League on Saturday:

At Glasgow:

Kris Boyd's hat trick (8', 25', 31') lifted Rangers to a 3-0 home whitewashing of third-place Aberdeen, allowing the hosts to open up a seven-point advantage for second place (and a Champions League qualifying berth).

At Inverness:

After trailing 1-0 at halftime, cellar-dwelling Dunfermline picked up their first road win of the league season, 3-1 over Inverness Caledonian Thistle. Stephen Glass scored twice (48', PK-79') and Jim McIntyre once (61') for The Pors.

At Edinburgh:

Barry Robson's second-half hat trick (51', 59', 78') helped sparked an offensive barrage that busted open a deadlock game which saw Dundee United bury hosts Heart of Lidlothian FC 4-0.

Road Win For Lyon; Lead Up To 16 Points

Eight games were played Saturday in France's Ligue 1:

At Nancy:

Lyon, thanks to goals courtesy of Milan Baros (36'), Kim Kallstrom (76'), and Fred (81'), easily dispatched hosts AS Nancy Lorraine 3-0 to stretch their lead atop the Ligue 1 standings to 16 points.

At Sedan:

Basement-occupying Sedan, thanks to Mansour Boutabout's equalizer at 47 minutes, gained a 1-1 home draw with Bordeaux (who climbed to third place---and a Champions League qualification berth---with the tie).

At Marseille:

With two goals from Mamadou Niang (6', 41'), Marseille ended their seven game league winless streak by belting visiting Nice 3-0.

At Sochaux:

Sebastien Grax tallied twice (22', 55') to help lead Sochaux to a 4-2 doubling of visiting Toulouse.

At Monte Carlo:

After trailing 1-0, AS Monaco came back to defeat FC Nantes Atlantique, keeping the guests in the relegation zone. Deigo Perez (35') and Gael Givet (43') provided the scoring for Les Rouge et Blanc.

At Lille:

Le Mans, with goals from Ismael Bangoura (68') and Grafite (90'), knocked off hosts Lille 2-0.

At St. Etienne:

Pascal Feindouno (2'), Bafetimbi Gomis (17'), and Fredy Guarin (50') provided the scoring to send St. Etienne to a 3-1 home win over struggling Troyes.

At Valenciennes:

Visiting Lorient and Valenciennes battled to a 0-0 deadlock.

Bayern Stunned At Frankfurt; Schalke Back On Winning Track

Six games were played Saturday in the German Bundesliga:

At Frankfurt:

Christoph Preuss scored the game's only goal at 78 minutes, lifting Eintracht Frankfurt to a 1-0 home win over Bayern Munich.

At Gelsenkirchen:

Mladen Krstajic's goal in the 76th minute lifted league-leading FC Schalke 04 to a 1-0 home win over third-place VfB Stuttgart.

At Hannover:

Hamburg and homestanding Hannover 96 battled to a 0-0 deadlock.

At Wolfsburg:

Isaac Boakye (21'), Alexander Madlung (26'), and Marcelo dos Santos (83') eached notched a tally as VfL Wolfsburg held off visiting VfL Bochum 3-1.

At Dortmund:

Guests FC Nurnberg and Borussia Dortmund (in their first game for new head coach, ex-Hamburg coach Thomas Doll) battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

At Aachen:

Alemania Aachen, thanks to second-half goals from Jan Schlaudraff (71') and Lauentiu-Aurelian Reghecampf (PK-76'), defeated second-from-bottom visiting Arminia Bielefeld 2-0, spoiling Ernst Middledorp's debut as Die Arminen's new head coach.

Fabio Scores Equalizer For Sampdoria

At Genoa:
In Saturday's lone Italian Serie A contest, Fabio Quagliarella's equalizer at 57 minutes lifted Sampdoria to a 1-1 home draw with Palermo (who climbed to third place in the Serie A standings).

Wins For Barca, Racing, Mallorca, and Osasuna

Four games populated Saturday's Spanish La Liga schedule:

At Huelva:

Samuel Eto'o twice tallied (3', 42') to help lead table-topping FC Barcelona to a 4-0 road fistbeating of Recreativo Huelva.

At Valencia:

Goals from Pedro Munitis (20') and Lozano Farran Oriol (63') powered Racing Santander to a 2-0 home victory over third-place Valencia.

At Mallorca:

Goals from Guillermo Pereyra (1') and Juan Arnago (3') stood up as Mallorca picked up a 2-0 home win over Real Betis.

At Bilbao:

Goals from Inaki Munoz (PK-30'), David Lopez (47'), and Joze Izquierdo (72') sparked Osasuna to a 3-0 road beatdown of rlegation-threatened Athletic Bilbao.

Red Devils, Blues Post Wins

Seven games were contested Saturday in the English Premier League:

At Manchester:

Ji-Sung Park (14', 25') and Wayne Rooney (17', 74') each scored twice as league-leading Manchester United belted visiting Bolton 4-1.

At London:

Second-place Chelsea stayed six points off the league lead with a 3-0 home whitewashing of Sheffield United. Andriy Shevchenko (4'), Salomon Kalou (17') and Michael Ballack (58') provided the scoring for the two-time defending Premiership champs.

At Middlesbrough:

Sylvain Distin (61') and Emile Mpenza (74') provided the scoring punch for Manchester City as the visiting Citizens blanked Middlesbrough 2-0.

At Reading:

Two clubs hoping for European play next season, visiting Portsmouth and Reading, battled to a 0-0 draw.

At London:

Goalkeeper Paul Robinson scored from his own half of the pitch (63') to help lead Tottenham Hotspur to a 3-1 home win over relegation-threatened Watford. The Hornets fell back into the bottom of the EPL standings.

At Wigan:

Visiting Fulham and Wigan Athletic battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

At Blackburn:

Second-half goals from Carlos Tevez (PK-71') and Bobby Zamora (75') enabled West Ham United to climb out of the league basement with their first road win of the Premiership season, 2-1 over Blackburn.

Friday Home Win For CD Nacional

At Funchal, Madeira Islands:

In the lone Friday Portuguese SuperLiga match, Ricardo Fernandes (8')and Juliano Spadacio (37') delivered first-half tallies as CD Nacional blanked visiting Boavista 2-0.

Dutch Treat For RKC In Their Fight For Survival

At Waalwijk:

In Friday's lone Dutch Eredivisie contest, Ricky van der Bergh's game winner (71') lifted relegation-threatened RKC Waalwijk to a 3-2 home win over Roda JC Kerkrade, drawing the hosts to within two points of safety.

Hertha Berlin UEFA Cup Hopes Damaged

At Berlin:

In Friday's lone German Bundesliga match, Sergiu Radu's tally (47') provided all the scoring as Energie Cottbus climbed up to ninth place (for the time being) in the Bundesliga standings with their 1-0 road win over Hertha Berlin.

Draw For UEFA Cup

Here are the matchups for quarterfinal and semifinal-round play in the UEFA Cup, resulting from Friday's draw at Glasgow, Scotland:

Quarterfinal round:

April 5 and 12:

AZ Alkmaar vs. Werder Bremen

Bayer Leverkusen vs. Osasuna

Sevilla vs. Tottenham Hotspur

Espanyol vs. SL Benfica


Semifinal round:

April 26 and May 3:

Espanyol/Benfica winner vs. AZ/Bremen winner

Leverkusen/Osasuna winner vs. Sevilla/Spurs winner

May 16:

Final at Hampden Park, Glasgow,Scotland

Concacaf Champions Cup Semifinal Openers: Dynamo Top Pachuca; DC and Chivas Draw

Semifinal round action opened Thursday in the 2007 CONCACAF Champions Cup. Keep in mind that there is NO away goals rule here in these two-game total-goals sets.

At Houston:

Goals from Brian Ching (57') and Chris Wondolowski (84') powered the Houston Dynamo to a game-one 2-0 home win over Mexican club Pachuca.

At Washington:

Visiting Chivas of Guadalajara and DC United battled to a 1-1 draw in game one of the two clubs' two-game home-and -away series. Omar Bravo put the Goats in front with his 63rd-minute tally, but DC's Luciano Emilio scored the equalizer during second-half stoppage time.

UEFA Cup Quarterfinals Await AZ, Benfica, Sevilla, and Espanyol

Round of 16 play in UEFA Cup play concluded on Thursday:

At Alkmaar, Netherlands:

Goals courtesy of Shota Arveladze (14') and Danny Koevermans (56') enabled AZ Alkmaar to overcome their 4-2 road loss in game one to take the second game, this time at home against Newcastle United 2-0 to win the two game set on aggregate 4-4 because of the away goals rule (2 road goals for AZ to none for the Magpies).

At Lisbon, Portugal:

Simao Sabrosa tallied twice (12', PK-89') and Armando Petit added one more (27') as SL Benfica overturned their 2-1 game one defeat at Paris to win game two at home 3-1 and eliminate Paris Saint Germain 4-3 on aggregate.

At Donetsk, Ukraine:

Goalkeeper Andres Palop's goal in the fourth minute of second-half stoppage time enabled visiting Sevilla to tie game two 2-2 and two-game set 4-4 with Shakhtar Donetsk (each team having scored two away goals). The current cupholders' Ernesto Chevanton scored the game and series winner in the 15th minute of overtime, so Sevilla took the match 3-2 and the series on aggregate 5-4 to advance to the quarterfinals.

At Barcelona:

After a scoreless first half of game two (on top of the scoreless opener at Tel-Aviv), four different goal scorers each tallied once to lead Espanyol to a 4-0 home win in game two (and overall for the series on aggregate) over Maccabi Haifa.

There will be a draw for the quarterfinal round to take place on Friday in Glasgow, Scotland, which is the site of this year's final.

Key Wins For Blues, Gunners

Two games were played Wednesday in the English Premiership:

At Manchester:

Frank Lampard's successful 28th-minute penalty kick was the only goal of Chelsea's 1-0 road win over Manchester City. The win drew the Blues within six points of front-running Manchester United.

At Birmingham:

Abou Diaby notched the game's only goal (10') as Arsenal climbed into third place in the Premiership standings following their 1-0 road win over Aston Villa.

Bremen, Leverkusen, Osasuna, and Spurs Reach UEFA Cup Quarterfinals

Four games were played on Wednesday as four UEFA Cup round-of-16 series came to their respective conclusions:

At Bremen, Germany:

Following up their 1-0 road win at Vigo, Werder Bremen took out Celta Vigo with their 2-0 home win in game two, taking the series 3-0 on aggregate. Hugo Almeida (48') and Clemens Fritz (61') scored for Werder in this game.

At Leverkusen, Germany:

Bouncing back from their 2-1 series-opening setback in France, Bayer Leverkusen overpowered Lens 3-0 in the return match at home to take the series 4-2 on aggregate. Andriy Voronin (36'), Sergei Barbarez (56'), and Juan (70') tallied for The Lions.

At Pamplona, Spain:

Pierre Webo scored the lone goal (71') of game two of this round-of-16 set, sending Osasuna to a 1-0 home win over Rangers, and sending Los Rojillos to the quarterfinals as they won the series on aggregate, 2-1.

At London:

Dimitar Berbatov's first-half double (28', 42') helped lead hosts Tottenham Hotspur to a second 3-2 win at Sporting Braga's expense, allowing Spurs to win the series 6-4 on aggregate.

Dons Draw Closer To Rangers And Champions League Spot

At Motherwell:

Marc Fitzpartick's own goal (32') combined with Richard Foster's insurance tally (90') lifted third-place Aberdeen to a 2-0 road win over Motherwell in the lone Tuesday match in the Scottish Premier League. The win drew the Dons within four points of second place Rangers.

Potential For Manchester United-Chelsea FA Cup Final At New Wembley

The draw took place today for the FA Cup semifinals on Monday with Blackburn set to take on the winner of the quarterfinal replay between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur (set for next week at Spurs' home pitch at White Hart Lane in London) and Watford getting the winner of the Middlesbrough-Manchester United replay (set for next Monday at Old Trafford). The sites for the semifinal matches, set to be played the weekend of April 14/15, are still to be determined.

Benfica Closer To Top

At Lisbon:

Goals from Simao Sabrosa (15') and Armando Petit (85') lifted second-place SL Benfica to a 2-0 home win over Uniao Leiria. The wins moves The Eagles to within four points of frontrunning FC Porto and five up on third-place Sporting Club Portugal.

Crew Top FCD In Inaugural Pioneer Cup Match

At Frisco, Texas:

Second-half goals from Joseph Ngwenya (58') and Kei Kamara (62') broke open a scoreless deadlock and powered the Columbus Crew to a 3-0 win over FC Dallas in the inaugural Lamar Hunt Pioneer Cup contest.

FA Cup Replay On Tap For Blues and Spurs; Rovers and Hornets Advance To Semis

Three Sunday quarterfinal round matches took place in England's FA Cup:

At London:

Frank Lampard scored twice (22', 71') and Solomon Kalou added the equalizer (86') as Chelsea came back from a two-goal deficit to gain a 3-3 home draw with Tottenham Hotspur. This will set up a replay next week at the Spurs' pitch at White Hart Lane.

At Blackburn:

Goals from Aaron Mokoena (28') and Matt Derbyshire (90') lifted Blackburn to the FA Cup semifinals as they defeated visiting Manchester City 2-0.

At Plymouth:

Hameur Bouazza's goal (pictured here) at 21 minutes was all the scoring as Premiership strugglers Watford advanced to the FA Cup semifinals with their 1-0 road win over League Championship midtablers Plymouth Argyle.
Photo by Richard Heathcote, Getty Images

Beavers and Porto Win; Two Draws In Portugal

Four games were played on Sunday in the Portuguese BwinLiga:

At Coimbra:

Geraldo (12') and Renato Queiros(80') provided the scoring for Pacos de Ferreira as the visiting Beavers blanked Academica de Coimbra 2-0.

At Funchal, Madeira:

Adriano (18') and Jose Raul Meireles (27') provided first-half tallies for league-leading FC Porto as the visitors held off Maritimo 2-1.

At Setubal:

Visiting (and last-place) Desportivo das Aves battled Vitoria Setubal to a 1-1 draw. Kevin Amuneke put Vitoria in front at 12 minutes, only to see the guests' Paulo Sergio tie it up at 24 minutes.

At Braga:

Sporting Braga climbed up to fourth place in the BwinLiga standings following their 0-0 home stalemate with relegation-threatened Beira Mar.

Three Draws and an Ajax Win On The Road

Four games occupied the Sunday Dutch Eredivisie schedule:

At Enschede:

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's hat trick (21', 30', 75') helped lead Ajax Amsterdam to a convincing 3-1 road win over Twente Enschede (and climb over the hosts into third place) in a battle of Champions League hopefuls.

At Rotterdam:

League-leading PSV Eindhoven and relegation-threatened Excelsior battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

At Alkmaar:

In another battle of UEFA Champions League hopefuls, hosts AZ Alkmaar and Feyenoord Rotterdam battled to a 0-0 deadlock.

At Arnhem:

Fred Benson's goal at 90 minutes lifted Vitesse Arnhem to a 2-2 home draw with cellar-dwelling ADO Den Haag, who coughed up two big points in their fight to avoid relegation.

Rangers Knock Off Celtic On The Road In Old Firm Rivalry

At Glasgow:

In the only Sunday Scottish Premier League contest, Ugo Ehiogu's goal at 50 minutes provided all the scoring for Rangers as the visitors tightened their grip on second place in the SPL standings following their 1-0 triumph over archrival and table-topping Celtic in the latest edition of the Old Firm Derby.

More Woes For PSG; Marseille and Lyon Draw As Do Sedan and Lens

Three games were contested in France's Ligue 1 on Sunday:

At Paris:

Younes Kaboul scored the lone goal (41) in AJ Auxerre's 1-0 home win at the expense of relegation-threatened Paris Saint Germaine.

At Lyon:

Mamadou Niang's equalizer (87') enabled Marseille to gain a 1-1 road draw with league-leading Lyon.

At Lens:

Seydou Keita's goal at 30 minutes enabled second-place Lens to gain a 1-1 home draw with basement club Sedan.

Late Goal Earns Point For Werder; Goose Eggs From Leverkusen and Hamburg (HSV Win Streak Ends At Four)

Two games were played in the German Bundesliga on Sunday:

At Munich:

Markus Rosenberg's 66th-minute equalizer enabled third-place Werder Bremen to gain a 1-1 road deadlock with fourth-place Bayern Munich.

At Hamburg:

Bayern Leverkusen ended Hamburg's four-match winning streak by holding the hosts to a 0-0 stalemate. Rafael van der Vaart had a chance to put the hosts ahead, but his 70th-minute penalty kick failed.

Gimnastic Foil Sevilla Move For Top

Eight games were contested Sunday in Spain's Premiera Division:

At Tarragona:

Javier Portillo's goal at 76 minutes lifted relegation zone residents Gimnastic de Tarragona to a stunning 1-0 home win over Sevilla, spoiling the Sevillistos' effort to reclaim first place in the La Liga standings.

At Vigo:

Aritz Aduritz tied the game at 70 minutes, and enabled relegation-threatened Athletic Bilbao to gain a 1-1 road deadlock with Celta Vigo.

At Seville:

Real Zaragoza and homestanding Real Betis (in their final home match Manuel Ruiz de Lopera stadium before a three-match ban is enforced, in the aftermath of "fan" thuggery toward Sevilla in a recent Copa del Ray match) battled to a 1-1 stalemate as the hosts' Marcos Assuncao made his successful penalty kick at 45 minutes.

At Madrid:

Daniel Guiza's 24th-minute equalizer lifted Getafe to a 1-1 home deadlock with Recreativo Huelva. Ikechukwu Uche gave the visiting Senior the early lead at 4 minutes.

At San Sebastian:

Basement occupants Real Sociedad, thanks to goals from Savio (27'), Darko Kovacevic (45'), and Xabier Prieto (90'), overran guests Mallorca 3-1.

At Madrid:

Goals from Luciano Galleti (1') and Mista (84') lifted Atletico Madrid to a 2-0 home blanking of Deportivo La Coruna and placed themselves within two points of a Champions League berth.

At Santander:

The scoring ended only ten minutes into Espanyol's 1-1 road stalemate with Racing Santander. The Parakeets' Alberto Riera scored at 6 minutes, only to see the hosts' Ezequiel Garay equalize at 10 minutes.

At Pamplona:

Valencia's hopes for drawing closer to the top of the La Liga standings took a hit when the visitors were held to a 1-1 deadlock by Osasuna. Fernando Morientes scored the equalizer during second-half stoppage time to make sure that Los Ches left Pamplona with a point.