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.

Inter Takes Local Derby

Nine games were played Sunday in Italy's Serie A:

At Milan:

Second-half goals from Julio Cruz (54') and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (75') lifted Inter Milan to a 2-1 come-from-behind home derby win over AC Milan.

At Palermo:

Edison Cavani's equalizer (72') enabled Palermo to salvage a 1-1 home draw with Fiorentina.

At Rome:

Francesco Totti's double (PK-33', 60') helped lead second-place AS Roma to a 3-1 home win over Udinese.

At Bergamo:

Ferdinand Coly's equalizer at 88 minutes enabled relegation-threatened Parma to gain a 1-1 road deadlock with Atalanta.

At Verona:

In a match of two clubs fighting to stay out of the relegation zone, Messian, thanks to Christian Rigano's successful penalty kick at 87 minutes, gained a 1-1 road draw with Chievo Verona.

At Reggio Calabria:

Stephen Makinwa's 79th-minute game winner enabled visiting Lazio to climb up to third place in the Serie A standings as they defeated relegation zone residents Reggina 3-2.

At Empoli:

With second-half goals from Rahman Rezaei (57') and Christiano Lucarelli (90'), Livorno came from a two-goal halftime deficit to tie hosts Empoli 2-2.

At Siena:

Thanks to a goal in the 23rd minute from Sasa Bjelanovic lifted Ascoli up from the bottom of the Serie A standings with a 1-0 road win over slumping AC Siena, stretching the guests' unbeaten streak to five games.

At Turin:

Alessandro Rosina's goal at 77 minutes was the only score of Torino's 1-0 home win over Catania Calcio.

Red Devils Come Back To Force Replay With Boro

At Middlesbrough:

Cristiano Ronaldo's successful penalty kick (68') enabled Manchester United to come from behind to gain a 2-2 road draw with Middlesbrough in FA Cup quarterfinal round action. There will be a replay between the two clubs next Monday at Old Trafford.

Home Wins For Belenenses and SCP

Two games were played on Saturday in Portugal's BWINLIGA:

At Lisbon:

Jose Pedro (PK-12') and Dady (41') provided the offense as Belenenses moved into fourth place in the league standings after their 2-0 home blanking of CD Nacional.

At Lisbon:

Yanick Djalo's second-half double (48', 50') helped third-place Sporting Club Portugal rack up a 3-1 home win over Estrela Amadora.

Wins For Heerenveen, Willem II, and NEC; SC Heracles and NAC Draw

Four games populated the Saturday schedule in the Dutch Eredivisie:

At Heerenveen:

Petter Hansson scored the game's only goal (30') as SC Heerenveen defeated relegation-threatened RKC Waalwijk at home, 1-0.

At Tilburg:

Anouar Hadouir scored twice (33', 70') to help lead Willem II Tilburg continue their climb away from relegation danger as the King's Army pinned a 3-0 whoopin' on UEFA Cup hopefuls FC Groningen.

At Rotterdam:

Four different goal scorers helped NEC Nijmegen deliver a frontier-styled 4-0 road fistbeating on Sparta Rotterdam.

At Breda:

Igor Gluscevic scored the game-tying goal at 52 minutes to lift SC Heracles Almelo to a 1-1 road draw with UEFA Cup hopefuls NAC Breda.

Home Wins For Dons, Hibs, and Killie

Five games populated Saturday's Scottish Premier League schedule:

At Aberdeen:

Steve Lovell's 7th-minute tally held up as Aberdeen moved within four points of second place, thanks to their 1-0 home win over Hearts.

At Edinburgh:

Abdessalam Benjelloun's double (52', 74') enabled Hibernian to rack up a 2-0 home win over sliding Falkirk.

At Kilmarnock:

Paul Di Giacomo scored twice (17', 27') and Steven Naismith once (40') as Kilmarnock held off visiting Inverness Caledonian Thistle 3-2.

At Dundee:

Visiting Motherwell and Dundee United played to a 1-1 deadlock. Steven Robb scored for the host Tangerines at 29 minutes only to see Danny Murphy equalize at 37 minutes for the Steelmen.

At Dunfermline:

What would one suspect when the two bottom clubs in the SPL get together? A 0-0 stalemate between visiting (and second-bottom) St. Mirren and cellar occupants Dunferline, who now can start to smell demotion to the Scottish First Division.

Busy Saturday In Ligue 1

Seven games were contested Saturday in France's Ligue 1:

At Toulouse:

Jan Koller's equalizer at 76 lifted Monaco to a 1-1 road draw with Champions League hopefules Toulouse.

At Bordeaux:

In a battle of teams fighting to play in next season's UEFA Champions League, Bordeaux, powered by goals from Johan Micourd (45') and Fernando Cavenaghi (90'), defeated visiting Sochaux 2-0.

At Le Mans:

Thanks to goals from Mathieu Coutadeur (43') and Ismael Bangoura (52'), Le Mans held off St. Etienne for a 2-1 home victory.

At Lorient:

Lille remained in third place in the Ligue 1 standings following their 0-0 road deadlock with Lorient.

At Nantes:

Emerse Fae's game winner (74') lifted Nantes to a 2-1 home win over AS Nancy Lorraine as the hosts continued their fight to escape from the relegation zone.

At Nice:

Marama Vahirua's equalizer at 46 minutes enabled Nice to stretch their unbeaten streak to seven games as their home match with Rennes ended stalemated at 1-1.

At Troyes:

Valenciennes, thanks to goals courtesy of Yacine Bezzaz (38'), Sebastien Roudet (68'), and Laurent Dufrense (87'), cruised to a 3-1 road win over Troyes.

Saturday Six Pack In Germany

Six games were played Saturday in Germany's Bundesliga:

At Hannover:

Both goals in the contest between league-leading FC Schalke 04 and hosts Hannover 96 were scored in the first four minutes as the contest ended stalemated at 1-1. Halil Altintop gave the Royal Blues the lead at two minutes, only to see Reds tie it up on Michael Tarnat's equalizer at four minutes.

At Stuttgart:

VfB Stuttgart blew opportunities to move into second and gain ground on table-topping Schalke 04 by being held to a 0-0 home draw by VfL Wolfsburg.

At Mochengladbach:

Nando Rafael's double (32', 69') helped lead basement occupants Borussia Mochengladbach defeat visiting Hertha Berlin 3-1.

At Cottbus:

Alemania Aachen, powered by goals from Sascha Rosler (28') and Sergio Pinto (90'), defeated relegation-threatened Energia Cottbus 2-0 on the road.

At Bochum:

Thanks to the two-goal performance from Theofanis Gekas (48', 83'), VfL Bochum climbed out of the relegation zone with their 2-0 home win over Borussia Dortmund.

At Mainz:

Leon Adreasen's succesful penalty kick at 51 minutes provided the lone score in the match as Mainz continued their climb away from the relegation zone in their 1-0 home win over second-from-bottom Arminia Bielefeld.

David Suazo Gians Point For Cagliari

At Genoa:

In the only Saturday match in Italy's Serie A, David Suazo's 63rd-minute equalizer enabled Cagliari Calcio to gain a 1-1 away deadlock with Sampdoria.

Dramatic Draw Between Galaticos and Barca

Two games were played Saturday in Spain's La Liga:

At Barcelona:

Thanks to Lionel Messi's hat trick (11', 28', 90'), 10-man Barcelona gained a 3-3 home draw with Real Madrid to move, for the time being, into the top of the La Liga standings. Ruud van Nistelrooy scored twice (5', PK-13') and Sergio Ramos once (73') for the Galaticos.

At Valencia:

Goals from Diego Forlan ('9) and Jon Dahl Tomasson (72') powered Villarreal to a 2-0 road blanking of Levante.

Boavista and Naval 1 de Maio: Fit To Be Tied

At Figueira da Foz:

In Friday's lone game in the Portuguese BWINLIGA, Krzysztof Kazimierczak's equalizer (45') enabled visiting Boavista to gain a 1-1 road deadlock with Naval 1 de Maio. Saulo Rodrigues scored for Naval at 2 minutes.

Clean Sheets For FC Utrecht and Roda JC Kerkrade

At Kerkrade:

In the lone Friday Dutch Eredivisie match, visiting FC Utrecht and Roda JC Kerkrade battled to a 0-0 stalemate. Roda JC's Vladan Kujovic and fellow goalkeeper, Utrecht's Michael Vorm wound up with matching clean sheets.

Impressive Comeback For FC Nurnberg

At Nuremberg:

With two late goals, fifth-place FC Nurnberg bounced back from a 2-0 deficit to gain a 2-2 home draw with Eintracht Frankfurt in Friday's lone German Bundesliga contest. Goals from Sotirios Kyrgiakos (26') and Naohiro Takahara (69') gave the visitors a 2-0 lead before Christoph Spycher's own goal (81') put the hosts on the scoreboard. Robert Vittek's equalizer (87') completed the comeback. The draw, for the time being, lifted Eintracht Frankfurt out of the relegation zone.

Drawing For UEFA Champions League Quarterfinals: Reds and PSV At It Again

The drawing for the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals took place Friday in Athens, Greece.

Here are the matchups:

AC Milan vs. Bayern Munich

PSV Eindhoven vs. Liverpool

AS Roma vs. Manchester United

Chelsea vs. Valencia

The opening matches of these two-game, total goals series will take place on April 3 and 4, with the return encounters on April 10 and 11.

For Club Or Country

Here is something that has happened with Zambia's national team when too many of its' players have club commitments.

Brazilian Hot Head in Hot Water In Japan

Hey!

It's only a game, buddy.

Round Of 16 In UEFA Cup Begins

Eight two-game, total-goals series began Thursday in Round-of-16 play in the 2006-07 UEFA Cup:

At Braga, Portugal:

Robbie Keane's double (57', 90'+2) helped spurred Tottenham Hotspur to a 3-2, series-opening, road win over Sporting Braga.



At Vigo, Spain:

Hugo Almeida was the man for Werder Bremen as his goal at 84 minutes gave the German club a 1-0 road win in their series opener over Celta Vigo.

At Lens, France:

Goals from Oliver Monterrubio (17') and Daniel Cousin (PK-70') paced Lens to a series-opening 2-1 home win over Bayer Leverkusen.

At Glasgow:

Brahim Hemdani's equalizer two minutes into second-half stoppage time enabled Rangers to salvage a series-opening 1-1 home draw with Osasuna. Raul Garcia scored at 17 minutes for the guests.


At Tel-Aviv, Israel:

In the series opener for both clubs, visiting Espanyol and Maccabi Haifa battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

At Paris:

Quick goals late in the first half from Pedro Pauleta (36') and Pierre-Alain Frau (41') enabled Paris Saint-Germain, a team currently in the drop zone domestically, to overcome an early 1-0 deficit to take the opening match, 2-1 at home, over SL Benfica.

At Newcastle, England:

Obafemi Martins twice tallied (23', 37') to help lead Newcastle United to a 4-2 home win in their series opener with AZ Alkmaar.


At Seville, Spain:

Enzo Maresca's successful penalty kick at 88 minutes enabled current UEFA Cup holders Valencia to salvage a series-opening 2-2 draw with visiting Shakhtar Donetsk.

UEFA Champions League Round of 16 Play Concludes

Wednesday marked the final day of Round-of-16 play in the 2006-07 UEFA Champions League:

At Milan:

With no goals scored in 180 minutes of action over two games, AC Milan pulled out the series with an overtime goal to defeat visiting Celtic 1-0 on aggregate. Kaka, pictured here, scored the series' only goal in the third minute of overtime.
Photo © Getty Images, 2007


At London:

Coming off their 1-0 home win two weeks ago, PSV Eindhoven, by drawing 1-1 with Arsenal in game two on the Gunners' pitch, advanced to the quarterfinals by winning the series on aggregate, 2-1. Alex , pictured here, scored the series winner at 83 minutes. Photo © Getty Images, 2007

At Manchester, England:

Henrik Larsson, pictured here , in his final home game at Old Trafford, scored the only goal at 72 minutes as Manchester United finished off visiting Lille, winning the game 1-0 and the series on aggregate, 2-0. Hammerin' Henrik is heading back to Swedish club Helsingborgs IF next week. Photo © Getty Images, 2007

At Munich:

Roy Maakay scored 11 seconds into Bayern Munich's home rematch with Real Madrid. It was the fastest goal in Champions League history. Lucio, pictured here, added another goal at 66 minutes to clinch the series for the Bundesliga champs. Despite losing the opener at Madrid two weeks ago, Bayern did score two away goals which came in handy, as the Bavarians won the return match 2-1 at home, and won the series because they doubled the Galaticos' away goal total 2-1, even though the series was deadlocked at four goals apiece. Photo © Getty Images, 2007


The draw for the quarterfinal round will take place this coming Friday.

Round Of 16 In UEFA Champions League Continues

Four games on Tuesday as the Round of 16 in the 2006-07 UEFA Champions League now reached the second game of the respective two-game, total-goals sets.

At Liverpool:

On the strength of the two goals scored two weeks ago at Barcelona, Liverpool advanced to the quarterfinal round, taking their two-game series, dethroning defending champs FC Barcelona 2-2 despite dropping game two at home 1-0, with the guests' Eidur Gudjohnsen scoring game two's lone goal at 75 minutes. Pictured is the Reds' Steven Gerard, celebrating after his side eliminated the defending champions (© Getty Images, 2007).

At Lyon:

First-half goals courtesy of Francesco Totti, pictured here (22') and Alessandro Mancini (44') powered AS Roma to a 2-0 game two road win over Lyon, enabling The Wolves to advance 2-0 on aggregate.
Photo © Getty Images, 2007



At London:

Second-half goals from Arjen Robben(48) and Michael Ballack, pictured here (79') , lilfted Chelsea to a 2-1 home win in game two with FC Porto, enabling the Blues to take the series 3-2 on aggregate. Photo © Getty Images, 2007



At Valencia:

Here's where the away goals rule really helped. The two away goals in Milan two weeks ago in the series opener proved to be enough for Valencia as they returned home for game two and played Inter Milan to a 0-0 draw, enabling the Spanish club to advance 2-2 on aggregate. Pictued here are Nerozzurri captain Javier Zanetti battling Miguel Angel Angulo of Los Ches for the ball. Javier won the battle, but Inter lost the series. Photo © Getty Images, 2007

Belenenses and Boavista Trade Goose Eggs

At Porto:

In Monday's only Portuguese Super Liga match, visiting Belenenses and Boavista battled to a 0-0 stalemate as the hosts' William Andem and the guests' Marco Goncalves traded clean sheets.

Road Win For Hearts

At Motherwell:

Heart of Midlothian posted a 2-0 road win over Motherwell in Monday's lone Scottish Premier League contest, allowing the visitors to solidify a UEFA Cup berth while climbing to within seven points of second-place Rangers. Ibrahim Tall scored the game winner at 37 minutes.

Naval 1 de Maio, CD Nacional, Estrela Amadora Win; Sporting Club Portugal and Uniao Leiria Draw

Four games were contested Sunday in the Portuguese BWINLiga:

At Aveiro:

Saulo Rodrigues (56'), Nei Aparecido (PK-81', 87') provided the goals for Naval 1 de Maio as the guests bested relegation-threatened Beira Mar 3-1.

At Funchal:

CD Nacional had no problem with Academica de Coimbra, fistbeating the guests 4-0.

At Amadora:

Deme Ndiaye provided the lone goal (22') of Estrela Amadora's 1-0 home victory over Maritimo.

At Leiria:

Third-place Sporting Club Portugal and Uniao Leiria played to a 0-0 deadlock. The hosts now move to fifth place in the BwinLiga standings.

AZ Climb Up To Second as Ajax Stumble At Home Against Heerenveen; Bad Loss For ADO; Roda JC and Feyenoord Draw

Four Sunday matches dotted the Dutch Eredivisie schedule:

At Amsterdam:

Lasse Nilsson's goal (18') was the only tally of SC Heerenveen's 1-0 road win over Ajax Amsterdam.

At Utrecht:

Four different goal scorers paced AZ Alkmaar to a 4-0 road fistbeating of FC Utrecht, moving the visitors to second place in the Eredivise standings, eight points in back of table-topping PSV Eindhoven.

At Almelo:

With goals from Rob Maas (PK-36'), Igor Gluscevic (77'), and Karim Bridji (83'), SC Heracles Almelo delivered a serious blow to ADO Den Haag's hopes of playing in the top flight next year, ending their 18-game winless streak with a 3-1 triumph at the cellar occupants' expense.

At Rotterdam:

Pierre van Hooijdonk's equalizer at 84 minutes helped Feyenoord Rotterdam salvage a 1-1 home stalemate with Roda JC Kerkrade.

Rangers Tighten Hold On Second Place, Thanks To Charlie Adam

At Edinburgh:

Charlie Adam provided both goals (4', 60') as Rangers blanked hosts Hibernian 2-0 in Sunday's lone Scottish Premier League match, as 'Jers tightened their hold on second place.

Road Wins For Lens and Nantes

Two Ligue 1 contests took place on Sunday in France:

At Marseille:

Lens tightened their hold on second place in the Ligue 1 standing thanks to their 1-0 road win over Marseille. Aruna Dindane provided the game's lone score with his successful 59th-minute penalty kick.

At Sochaux:

FC Nantes Atlantique climbed out of the Ligue 1 basement with their 2-1 road win over Sochaux. Dimitri Payet (23') and Claudiu Keseru (51') provided Les Canaris with the goals.

Wins For Energie Cottbus and Aachen

Two games were played on Sunday in the German Bundesliga:

At Dortmund:

Vlad Munteanu's double (6', PK-56') helped pace Energie Cottbus to a 3-2 road win over Borussia Dortmund.

At Aachen:

Second-half goals from Jan Schlaudraff (47') and Vedad Ibisevic (49') paced Alemania Aachen to a 2-1 come-from-behind home victory against Mainz.

Palermo Stumble Lifts Messina Out Of Drop Zone

Seven Sunday matches were conducted in Italy's Serie A:

At Messina:

Christian Rigano's double (45', 65') provided all the scoring as Messina climbed out of the relegation zone by knocking off visiting Palermo 2-0.

At Cagliari:

Cagliari ended their three game losing streak thanks to their 2-0 home win over Atalanta. David Suazo (4') and Simone Pepe (71') provided the goals for the Sardinians.

At Rimini:

In another "home" contest played at a neutral site behind closed doors, Catania Calcio ended their three-game losing skid with a 1-1 draw with AC Siena. Giorgio Corona scored at 56 minutes to give the Elephants the lead, only to see the guests' Francesco Cozza equalize at 73 minutes.

At Parma:

Giuseppe Rossi's successful penalty kick in the seventh minute of second-half stoppage time enabled Parma to gain a 1-1 home draw with now-fellow relegation zone residents Reggina.

At Florence:

Luca Toni (31', 34') and Alessandro Gambieri (74', 83') each scored twice to lead Fiorentina to a 5-1 thumping of visiting Torino.

At Udine:

Nicola Pozzi's 18th-minute goal lifted visiting Empoli to a 1-0 win over Udine to climb up to fifth place in Serie A.

At Rome:

Tommaso Rocchi's goal (23') was the lone tally in Lazio's 1-0 home win over Sampdoria, as the hosts now reside in fourth place in the Serie A standings.

Ruud Salvages Draw For Galaticos; Royal Society Football Club of San Sebastian Falls To Basement

Eight games were played Sunday in Spain's Premiera Liga:

At Madrid:

Ruud van Nistelrooy's successful penalty kick (45') enabled fourth-place Real Madrid to salvage a 1-1 home draw with local rival Getafe.

At Zaragoza:

Real Zaragoza stayed very much alive for a Champions League berth following their 3-2 home win over Real Sociedad. Pablo Aimar (53'), Alberto Diego Milito (PK-75'), and Henrique Ewerthon (81') provided the scoring punch for The Banquillos, while the visiting Erreala now fell into the bottom of the La Liga standings with only two wins and eight draws (14 points) after 25 games.

At Bilbao:

Athletic Bilbao blew a shot at climbing out of the drop zone as visiting (and fellow relegation zone occupants) Gimnastic de Tarragona beat them 2-0 to climb out of the league basement.

At Santander:

Juanjo scored the only goal (79') of a match that saw Racing Santander rack up their fifth straight home win, 1-0 over Osasuna.

At La Coruna:

Thanks to Fernando's tally (80'), Real Betis picked up a 1-0 win over hosts Deportivo La Coruna.

At Barcelona:

Villarreal, thanks to Diego Forlan's 53rd-minute equalizer, gained a 1-1 road draw with Espanyol, snapping the Parakeets' five-game winning streak.

At Mallorca:

Goals courtesy of Bosko Jankovic (48'), Victor Castano (51'), and Juan Arango (90') propelled Mallorca to a 3-1 home win over Levante.

At Huelva:

Florent Sinama Pongolle scored the lone goal (PK-10') in Recreativo Huelva's 1-0 home win over Atletico Madrid.

Spurs Deliver Cruel Blow To Hammers' Survival Chances; Benni Doubles In Rovers Win

Two games were played Sunday in the English Premier League:



At London:



With West Ham United leading 3-2, Tottenham Hotspur's Dimitar Berbatov equalized at 89 minutes, then, in the fifth minute of second-half stoppage time, Paul Stalteri bagged home the game winner (pictured here, beating Hammers' goalkeeper Robert Green (Photo by Phil Cole, Getty Images), as Spurs bounced back to win on the road 4-3, and sending the basement-occupying Hammers closer to the League Championship.

At Bolton:

Two successful penalty kicks from Benni McCarthy (58', 68') lifted Blackburn to a 2-1 road win over Bolton.

Portugal's Top Two, FC Porto and Benfica, Post 1-0 Wins

Two games were played Saturday in Portugal's Super Liga:

At Porto:

Adriano Vieira provided the lone goal (9') in league-topping FC Porto's 1-0 home win over fourth-place Sporting Braga.

At Vila das Aves:

Miguel Nuno Gomes, with his 59th-minute tally, lifted second-place SL Benfica to a 1-0 road win over basement residents Desportivo Aves.

Saturday Win For PSV

Four games were played on Saturday in the top soccer division in the Netherlands, the Dutch Eredivisie:

At Eindhoven:

Jefferson Farfan (3') and Eduardo Alcides (18') provided the goals as league-leading PSV Eindhoven got the best of relegation threatened RKC Waalwijk at home 2-0.

At Tilburg:

The match between visiting Sparta Rotterdam and Willem II Tilburg ended in a 0-0 stalemate.

At Groningen:

FC Groningen climbed back into the UEFA Cup playoff spots with their 3-1 home win over NAC Breda. Mark-Jan Fledderus (7'), Erik Nevland (67'), and Koen Van Der Laak (PK-78') provided the tallies for The Pride of the North.

At Arnhem:

Excelsior climbed out of the relegation-playoff zone with a come-from-behind 3-2 road win over Vitesse Arnhem. Johan Voskamp (64'), Eldridge Rojer (84'), and Andwele Slory (86') provided the second-half scoring for the Roodzwarten.

Another Win For The Bhoys

Four games populated the Saturday Scottish Premier League schedule:

At Glasgow:

Kenny Miller (4') and Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink (76') provided the scoring for runaway league leaders Celtic as the Bhoys downed basement club Dunfermline 2-1 at home.

At Falkirk:

Gary Dempsey (16') and Richard Foster (61') provided enough scoring for Aberdeen in their 2-1 road win over Falkirk.

At Inverness:

Barry Wilson's last second goal (90') lifted Inverness Caledonian Thistle to a 1-0 home win over Dundee United.

At St. Mirren:

Colin Nish's double (59', 79') proved to be all the scoring in Kilmarnock's 2-0 road blanking of struggling St. Mirren.

Another Lyon Victory; Lille Up To Third

Saturday found eight games contested in France's Ligue 1:

At St. Etienne:

Lyon, thanks to goals from Kim Kallstrom (28'), Tiago Cardoso (37'), and Fred (47'), defeated hosts St. Etienne 3-1 to stretch their Ligue 1 lead to 16 points.

At Lille:

Abdul Kader Keita (16', 34') and Stephane Dumont (19', 46') each scored twice to lead Lille to a 4-0 home fistbeating of Troyes, thus allowing the Mastiffs to climb up to third place in the Ligue 1 standings.

At Valenciennes:

Toulouse fell out of third place following their 0-0 road deadlock with Valenciennes, who in turn, climbed out of the relegation zone.

At Lorient:

Visiting Nice and Lorient played to a 0-0 stalemate.

At Nancy:

Grafite provided the equalizer at 73 minutes to lift visiting Le Mans to a 1-1 deadlock with AS Nancy Lorraine.

At Monte Carlo:

Hosts Monaco prevented Bordeaux from moving into a UEFA Champions League (or for that matter, a UEFA Cup) berth by holding the guests to a 0-0 draw.

At Auxerre:

AJ Auxerre bested visiting Rennes 1-0, thanks to Ineneusz Jelen's goal at 65 minutes.

At Sedan:

Hosts Sedan climbed out of the Ligue 1 basement with their 2-0 home win over Paris Saint Germain, whose defeat dropped them into the relegation zone. Mansour Boutabout provided the insurance goal for Les Sangliers (74')

Bayern Beats Hertha In Berlin; Werder Leapfrogs Stuttgart Into Second

Six games were played in the German Bundesliga on Saturday:

At Berlin:

Bayern Munich, powered by tallies from Hasan Salihamidzic (30'), Luka Podolski (31'), and Roy Makaay (68'), held off Hertha Berlin for a 3-2 road win to lift them up to fourth place in the Bundesliga standings, six points in back of front-running FC Schalke 04.

At Bremen:

Aaron Hunt's hat trick (25', 72', 76') proved to be all the scoring as Werder Bremen took over second place in the Bundesliga standings (three points in back of FC Schalke 04) following their 3-0 home whitewashing of VfL Bochum, who have fallen back into the relegation zone.

At Leverkusen:

Bayer Leverkusen, powered by goals courtesy of Andriy Voronin (19'), Paul Freier (22'), and Juan (61'), held off visiting VfB Stuttgart 3-1.

At Wolfsburg:

Cedric Makiadi's tally at 65 minutes lifted VfL Wolfsburg to a 1-0 home win over basement-dwelling Borussia Mochengladbach.

At Bielefeld:

Jorg Bohme scored the game winner at 86 minutes to lift Arminia Bielefeld out of the relegation zone with their 3-2 home win over fifth-place FC Nurnberg.

At Frankfurt:

Eintracht Frankfurt climbed out of the Bundesliga's relegation zone, thanks to their 2-0 home shutout over Hannover 96. Naohiro Takahara (58') and Michael Thurk (75') provided the goals for the Eagles.

Start Of New Winning Streak For Inter

Three Saturday games took place in Italy's Serie A:

At Livorno (or is it Leghorn?):

Inter Milan started on another winning streak after their come-from-behind 2-1 road win over Livorno. Julio Cruz (35') and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (66') tallied for the Nerozzurri.

At Milan:

After trailing 1-0, AC Milan came back to defeat visiting Chievo Verona 3-1 to move, for the time being, into fourth place in the Serie A standings. Alberto Gilardino (33'), Massimo Oddo (55'), and Clarence Seedorf (90') scored for the Rossoneri.

At Ascoli:

Christian Wilhelmsson's equalizer at 85 minutes allowed second-place AS Roma to salvage a 1-1 road draw with basement-residing Ascoli.

Sevilla Stuns Barca To Move To Top Of La Liga; Valencia Victorious Too

Two games played Saturday in Spain's Premiera Division:

At Seville:

Goals from Alexander Kerzhakov (39') and Daniel Alves (61') sparked Sevilla to a come-from-behind 1-0 home win over Barcelona and leapfrogged the guests into first place in the La Liga standings.

At Valencia:

Fernando Morientes scored the lone goal (67') in third-place Valencia's 1-0 home win over Celta Vigo.

Red Devils Stun Reds; Blues Keep Pace

Eight games took place Saturday in the English Premier League:

At Liverpool:

John O'Shea's goal during second-half injury time lifted league-leading Manchester United to a big 1-0 road win over Liverpool.

At Portsmouth:

Goals from Didier Drogba (33') and sub Salomon Kalou (82') enabled Chelsea to stay nine point in back of Manchester United following their 2-0 road win over Portsmouth.

At Newcastle:

Visiting Middlesbrough and Newcastle United battled to a 0-0 draw.

At London:

Goals from Gilberto Silva (PK-51) and Julio Baptista (62') enabled Arsenal to hold off Reading for a 2-1 home triumph.

At Sheffield:

Mikel Arteta's successful penalty kick at 75 minutes lifted Everton to a 1-1 road deadlock with Sheffield United.

At London:

Both goals were scored in the first half as guests Aston Villa and Fulham played to a 1-1 stalemate. John Carew put Villa in front (21') only to see the Cottagers' Carlos Bocanegra tie it up at 23 minutes.

At Watford:

Goals courtesy of Luke Young (67') and Darren Ambrose (89') enabled Charlton Athletic to bounce back from a 2-0 halftime deficit to tie hosts Watford 2-2 in a battle of two of the EPL's relegation zone residents.

At Manchester:

Caleb Foran tally (18') was the only goal in Wigan's 1-0 road win over Manchester City, pushing the Latics further away from the drop zone.

Pacos Ferreira Climbs Into UEFA Cup Berth

At Pacos de Ferreira:

Joao Paulo's successful penalty kick (11') provided the only goal of the match as Pacos Ferreira bested visiting Vitoria Setubal 1-0 to climb into fifth place in Portugal's Super Liga in the league's lone Friday encounter.

Dutch Treat For Twente Enschede

At Nijmegen:

In Friday's only Dutch Eredivisie match, Sharbel Touma scored twice (54', 69') as UEFA Champions League hopefuls Twente Enschede pounded hosts NEC Nijmegen 3-0.

Hamburg Wins Again, Shocking Schalke

At Gelsenkirchen:

Hamburg picked up their fourth consecutive league win as they knocked off league-leading FC Schalke 04 on the road 2-0 in the lone Friday German Bundesliga contest. Rafael van der Vaart (71') and Ivica Olic (80') provided the scoring for HSV.

Dynamo, United Reach CONCACAF Champions Cup Semis

In quarterfinal round action from the 2007 CONCACAF Champions Cup tournament:

Wednesday:

At San Marcos, Guatemala:

Mexican club Pachuca followed up their 2-0 home win on February 22 with a 1-0 road win over Marquense to win their two-game set 3-0 on aggregate. Luis Angel Landin scored game two's lone goal at 17 minutes.

At Guadalajara, Mexico:

Chivas of Guadalajara bounced back from their 2-1 February 13 setback at Marabella, Trinidad & Tobago to smother W Connection before the home fans 3-0 to win their two-game set 4-2 on aggregate. Sergio Santana scored twice (21', 46') for the Goats.


Thursday:

At Washington, DC:

Following up their February 21 4-1 win at Costa Rica, DC United finished off Pantarenas with a 3-2 home triumph to wrap up their two game set 7-3 on aggregate. Luciano Emilio twice tallied (37', 84') for the hosts, who will face Chivas of Guadalajara in the semifinal round.

At College Station, Texas:

Despite dropping their opener on February 21 at Tegucigalpa, Honduras, reigning MLS champion Houston Dynamo bounced back with a 2-0 win to win their two game set with CD Olimpia 2-1 on aggregate. Paul Daglish (27') and Kelly Gray (74') scored for the Dynamo, who will face Pachuca in the semifinals.

"Fan" Misbehavior, Spanish Style

Wednesday's second leg of a series between Sevilla and crosstown rivals Real Betis in Spain's Copa del Rey had to be abandoned after Sevilla head coach Juande Ramos (a former coach of Real Betis) was hit by an object from the crowd after his club had scored a goal during the second half. Yes, friends and neighbors, hooliganism has shown its ugly head again, this time in Spain, during domestic cup play.

Inter Winning Streak Snapped

Ten games were played Wednesday in Italy's Serie A:

At Milan:

Udinese ended Inter Milan's seventeen-game league winning streak by holding the hosts to a 1-1 draw. Christian Obodo scored at 47 minutes to give the visiting Bionconeri a 1-0 lead before Hernan Crespo equalized at 66 minutes for The Nerozzurri.

At Verona:

Francesco Totti's double (34', 48') enabled AS Roma to bounce back from a two-goal deficit to gain a 2-2 road deadlock with Chievo Verona:

At Ascoli:

In a battle of the bottom two teams in the Serie A standings, Parma and las-place Ascoli battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

At Palermo:

Sixth-place AC Milan and third-place Palermo battled to a 0-0 draw in Sicily.

At Turin:

In a battle of struggling clubs who hired new coaches this week, Torino won for new coach Gianni De Biasi 1-0 over guests Cagliari Calcio (and their new head coach Marco Giampaolo), thanks to Cesare Bovo's tally at 23 minutes.

At Reggio Calabria:

Adrian Mutu's successful penalty kick at 87 minutes lifted Fiorentina to a 1-1 road draw with struggling Reggina.

At Empoli:

Luca Saudati's double (14', 62') helped propel hosts Empoli to a 3-1 win over relegation-threatened (and 10-man) Messina 3-1. For The Azzurri, it was their fifth straight home victory.

At Genoa:

Thanks to goals from Fabio Bazzani (71') and Sergio Volpi (PK-83'), Sampdoria came from behind to defeat visiting Atalanta 2-1.

At Rome:

With goals from Goran Pandev (60'), Sebastiano Siviglia (88'), and Tommaso Rocchi (90'), Lazio stayed in fourth place in the Serie A standings following their 3-1 home win over Catania Calcio.

At Siena:

Livorno and Siena played to a 0-0 deadlock. For the hosts, it was their fifth straight league game without a win.

The Beautiful Game?

Here's an aritcle on the recent spate of soccer violence plaguing Europe and South America. I think the association with rioting, BOTH inside and outside the stadium, has been a major factor in the sport's long history of problems becoming this country's fifth major league professional sport.

Monday In Portugal: Three Games, Clean Sweep For Home Clubs

Three games populated the Portuguese BWIN Liga on Monday:

At Funchal:

Maritimo defeated guests Uniao Leiria 2-1. Collins Mbesuma scored the equalizer at 45 minutes for the hosts, then Leiria's Nuno Laranjeiro scored the game loser with his own goal at 79 minutes.

At Braga:

Sporting Braga pulled off a 2-1 home win late over Estrela Amadora as Paulo Jorge(PK-36) and Wender (90') scored to lead The Arsenalists to the comback win.

At Lisbon:

SL Benfica tightened their grip on second place following their 3-1 home win over Pacos de Ferreira, thanks in part to Simao Sambrosa's double (8', 65')

You Think People Would Learn...

You figure that in the aftermath of the deadly rioting three weeks ago in Sicily, people would learn a valuable lesson. Unfortunately, as Romney Wordsworth (portrayed by Burgess Meredith in a 1961 episode of The Twilight Zone titled "The Obsolete Man") , a librarian condemned to death by the state because he was judged obsolete, told the state Chancellor( played by Fritz Weaver), "You never learn , do you? History teaches you nothing." Case in point, what happened on Saturday in Belgrade.

Easy Win For The Dragons; CD Nacional and Vitoria Setubal Draw

Two games were played Sunday in the Portugese BWINLiga:

At Aveiro:

Five different goal scorers paced league-leading FC Porto to a 5-0 road brassknuckling of relegation-threatened Beira-Mar.

At Setubal:

Byung-suk Kim's equalizer at 83 minutes lifted Vitoria Setubal to a 1-1 home deadlock with CD Nacional.

Wins For Bordeaux and St. Ettiene (As PSG's Woes Continue); ASNL and Lens Draw

Three contests took place in France's Ligue 1 on Sunday:

At Bordeuax:

First-half goals from Fernando Menegazzo (PK-24') and Jussie (44') enabled Bordeaux to hold off visiting---and relegation-threatened---Valenciennes 2-1.

At Paris:

St. Etienne, thanks to goals from Damien Perquis (32') and Aruajo Ilan (45') blanked struggling hosts Paris Saint-Germain 2-0.

At Lens:

Youssouf Hadji's equalizer at 90 minutes lifted AS Nancy Lorraine to a 2-2 road draw with second-place Lens.

Barca Knock Athletic Into Drop Zone

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

At Barcelona:

Xavi (30') and Samuel Eto'o (41') provided first-half tallies to propel Barcelona to a 3-0 face-slapping of struggling Athletic Bilbao (who now has fallen into the relegation zone). The win moved Barca to the top of the La Liga standings.

At Madrid:

Hosts Getafe held Sevilla to a 0-0 draw, which dropped the visitors down to second place in La Liga.

At Vigo:

With second-half goals from Pedro Munitis (55') and Christian Alvarez (PK-79'), Racing Santander bounced back from a two-goal halftime deficit to earn a 2-2 road draw with Celta Vigo, who, in turn, escaped from the relegation zone.

At Seville:

Visiting Recreativo Huelva blew a shot at moving into a UEFA Cup berth by being held to a 0-0 road stalemate by Real Betis.

At Villrreal:

With goals from Jon Dahl Tomasson (38') and Fabricio Fuentes (90'), Villarreal came back from a 1-0 deficit to defeat visiting Mallorca 2-1.

At Valencia:

Visiting Real Zaragoza and Levante battled to a 0-0 deadlock.

At Tarragona:

Ruben Castro's equalizer at 90 minutes enabled cellar-dwelling Gimnastic de Tarragona to gain a 1-1 home draw with Valencia.

At Pamplona:

Espanyol, on the strength of goals from Ferran Coro (13') and Raul Tamudo (65'), polished off hosts Osasuna 2-0 for their fifth straight win.

Busy Sunday In Serie A

Eight games were played Sunday in Italy's Serie A:

At Cesana:

Five different goal scorers paced Inter Milan to their 17th consecutive Serie A victory, a 5-2 triumph over Catania Calcio played behind closed doors at a neutral site.

At Milan:

Thanks to Massimo Ambrosini's goal at 90 minutes, AC Milan climbed up to fifth place in the Serie A standings with their 1-0 home win over Sampdoria.

At Cagliari:

Lazio climbed into fourth place in the Serie A standings thanks to their 2-0 road win over Cagliari Calcio. Sanchez Emilson Cribari (21') and Tommaso Rocchi (34') provided the scoring for the Eagles.

At Messina:

Edgar Alvarez was the hero of the day as his goal at 90 minutes lifted relegation-threatened Messina to a 1-0 home win over AC Siena.

At Rome:

Thanks to goals from Francesco Tavaro (55'), Philippe Mexes (65'), and Christian Panucci (90'), AS Roma tightened their hold on second place with their 3-0 whitewashing of struggling Reggina at home.

At Florence:

With goals from Adrian Mutu (27') and Luca Toni (75'), Fiorentina kept their hopes of playing in European competition alive with their 2-0 home win over Empoli, which knocked the guests out of a Champions League qualifying berth.

At Udine:

Relegation zone residents Parma and hosts Udinese battled to an entertaining 3-3 deadlock. The hosts' Antonio di Natale scored twice (42', PK-68') while the visitors' Giuseppe Rossi's succesful penalty kick at 86 minutes helped give Parma a share of the spoils.

At Leghorn:

Hosts Livorno and basment-residing Ascoli battled to a 0-0 stalemate.

Ajax and AZ, Feyenoord and ADO: Fit To Be Tied; Road Win For NAC; Home Win For RKC

Four Sunday matches in the Dutch Eredivisie were played:

At Waalwijk:

Jan Vertongen (36'), Hans van de Haar (74'), and Tim Janssen (85') provided the goals as RKC Waalwijk climbed further away from the Eredivisie basement with their 3-1 home victory over Vitesse Arnhem.

At Rotterdam:

NAC Breda, thanks to goals courtesy of Patrick Mtiliga (51') and Anouar Diba (74'), climbed up to sixth place in the Eredivisie standings after their 2-0 road blanking of second-from-the-bottom Excelsior.

At The Hague:

Homestanding ADO Den Haag and Feyenoord Rotterdam played to a 3-3 stalemate. The bottom-dwelling hosts' Rick Hoogendorp scored twice (40', PK-62'), Feyenoord's Angelos Charisteas had two of his own (55', 73'), including the equalizer that produced the final score.

At Alkmaar:

Maarten Martens' equalizer at 79 minutes enabled second-place AZ Almaar to gain a 1-1 home draw with third-place Ajax Amsterdam. Kenneth Perez had put The Sons of the Gods in front with his 65th-minute tally.

Late Goal Earns Point For The Fools; Leverkusen Shocks Leaders

Two Bundesliga matches were contested Sunady in Germany:

At Mochengladbach:

Nando Rafael's goal at 90 minutes enabled Borussia Mochengladbach, currently at the bottom of the Bundesliga standings, to gain a share of the spoils with their 1-1 home draw with Werder Bremen, thus ruining the guests' shot at moving into second place.

At Gelsenkirchen:

Stefan Kiessling's goal at 85 minutes lifted Bayer Leverkusen to a 1-0 road victory over league-leading FC Schalke 04. That's the Lions' goalkeeper, Rene Adler in action, stopping another Schalke shot.

Home Wins For Latics, Rovers, and Spurs

Three games were contested Sunday in the English Premier League:

At Wigan:

Ryan Taylor scored the game's only goal (40') as Wigan Athletic defeated visiting Newcastle United at home 1-0 to move six points clear of the relegation zone. The game was Paul Jewell's 250th league game as the Latics' head coach, making him the longest serving manager in the club's history. Pictured here is Latics goalkeeper John Filan, stopping a penalty kick from the Magpies' Norberto Solano (Tony Marshall photo/Empics).

At Blackburn:

Shabani Nonda's double (1', 25') helped propel Blackburn Rovers to a 3-0 thumping of visiting Portsmouth.

At London:

Two goals from Robbie Keane (11', 22') helped lead Tottenham Hotspur to a decisive 4-1 triumph over Bolton.

Road Triumphs For Boavista and Belenenses

Two games were contested Saturday in Portugal's BWINLiga:

At Coimbra:

Rafal Grzelak (23') and Przemyslaw Kazmierczak (43') provided the goals for Boavista as the guests stymied Academica de Coimbra 2-0.

At Figueira da Foz:

Jose Pedro Salazar provided the game winner at 70 minutes as Belenenses climbed to sixth place thanks to their 3-2 road win over Naval 1 de Maio

Two Scoreless Draws and Home Wins For PSV and Roda JC

Four games were played Saturday in the Dutch Eredivise:

At Eindhoven:

PSV Eindhoven, with Alex scoring the game's lone tally (85'), stretched their lead in the Eredivisie standings to eight points following their 1-0 home win over FC Groningen.

At Kerkrade:

With Andres Oper contributing the game's lone goal (43'), Roda JC Kerkrade picked up a 1-0 home triumph at SC Heerenveen's expense.

At Rotterdam:

SC Heracles Almelo and hosts Sparta Rotterdam battled to a 0-0 deadlock.

At Enschede:

Hosts Twente Enschede battled to a 0-0 stalemate with Willem II Tilburg.

Nice Win Over Lille; Toulouse Up To Third

Seven games were contested Saturday in France's Ligue 1:

At Nice:

Bakari Kone's double (43', 85') sparked Nice to a relegation-zone-escaping 2-1 home win over Lille.

At Toulouse:

Toulouse, thanks in large part to Johan Elmander's double (39', 48'), climed into third place (and posession of a Champions League qualifying berth) after their 3-0 home whitewashing of Marseille.

At Lyon:

Goals at the death from Sylvain Wiltord (90') and Juninho (PK-90') ignited league-leading Lyon's comback from a late 3-1 deficit to gain a 3-3 home deadlock with Sochaux.

At Nantes:

Claudiu Keseru's 75th-minute equalizer enabled relegation-threatened FC Nantes Atlantique to salvage a 1-1 home draw with AJ Auxerre.

At Rennes:

Goals from Gregory Pujol (14') and Mansour Boutabout (87') powered cellar-dwelling Sedan to a 2-0 road win over Rennes.

At Troyes:

Gael Danic scored twice (2', 71') to help lead Troyes to an important 3-0 home pasting of Lorient.

At Le Mans:

Frederic Piquionne (15') and Diego Perez (47') provided the scoring punch for AS Monaco as the guests moved further away from the drop zone with their 2-0 win over Le Mans.

Stalemated Madrid Derby; Real Sociedad Woes Continue

Two games were contested Saturday in Spain's La Liga:

At Madrid:

Gonzalo Higuain's 62nd-minute equalizer enabled Real Madrid to gain a share of the spoils in a 1-1 draw on the road at a local derby with Atletico Madrid.

At San Sebastian:

Javier Arizmendi scored the only goal of the match (29') as Deportivo La Coruna secured only their second road win of the season, 1-0 over relegation-threatened Real Sociedad.

Bayern Finding Winner Touch; Resurgent Hamburg Out Of Relegation Zone; Mainz Also Finding Their Grove

Six Saturday contests took place in the German Bundesliga:

At Munich:

Goals from Cool Hand Lukas Podolski (PK-26') and Mark van Bommel (55') powered Bayern Munich to a 2-1 home win over VfL Wolfsburg.

At Frankfurt:

Goals from Rafael van der Vaart (7'), Piotr Trochowski (77'), and Ivaca Olic (90') enabled Hamburg to defeat sagging Eintracht Frankfurt 3-1, thus allowing the hosts to climb out of the relegation zone, which is were the defeated guests have now fallen into.

At Mainz:

Mohamed Zidan's double (20', 27') proved to be more than sufficient for Mainz as the hosts added more breathing space between themselves and the relegation zone with their 2-0 home win over hot FC Nurnberg.

At Hannover:

Arnold Bruggink scored twice (76', 78') to help Hannover 96 hold off visiting Borussia Dortmund 4-2.

At Cottbus:

Goals from Mariusz Kukielka (62') and Sergiu Radu (66') enabled Energie Cottbus to trade places with Arminia Bielefeld, that is, climb out of the relegation zone with their 2-1 home victory, thus dropping the guests into the bottom three of the Bundesliga standings.

At Bochum:

In a battle to teams fighting to avoid relegation, Alemania Aachen and hosts VfL Bochum battled to a 2-2 stalemate. Matthias Lehmann's goal at 57 minutes secured a share of the spoils for Aachen.

Chievo Blank Torino; Palermo and Atalanta Draw

Saturday found two games played in Italy's Serie A:

At Verona:

Erjon Bogdani's double (2', 45') helped lead Chievo Verona to a 3-0 home whitewashing of Torino.

At Bergamo:

Aimo Diana's 58th-minute equalizer helped Palermo gain a 1-1 road draw with Atalanta. Riccardo Zampagna's 13th-minute tally gave The Nerozzuri a 1-0 lead.

Hammers Hammered; Red Devils Stretch Lead Atop Premiership Table

Five games were played Saturday in the English Premier League:

At London:

Jerome Thomas scored twice (34', 80') to help lead Charlton Athletic to a 4-0 home demolition of fellow relegation zone residents West Ham United. Pictured is Darren Bent, who scored for the Addicks in the 41st minute.

At London:

Manchester United, on the strength of goals from Ryan Giggs (29') and Cristiano Ronaldo (88') came from behind to defeat hosts Fulham 2-1 and stretch their lead in the Premiership standings to nine points.

At Watford:

Goals from Manuel Fernandes (23'), Andrew Johnson (PK-25'), and Leon Osman (90') powered visiting Everton to a 3-0 whitewashing of basement-residing Watford, keeping the Hornets from climbing out of last place in the EPL.

At Liverpool:

Robbie Fowler two successful penalty kicks (20', 25') helped Liverpool coast to an easy 4-0 fistbeating of visiting Sheffield United.

At Middlesbrough:

Mark Viduka (7') and Ayegbeni Yakubu (69') scored to help Middlesbrough cool off visiting Reading 2-1.

Goose Eggs For Sporting and Deportivo Aves

At Lisbon:

In the lone Friday match in Portugal's BWINLIGA, basement residents Deportivo Aves held hosts Sporting Club Portugal to a 0-0 stalemate.

Impressive Home Win For Fc Utrecht

At Ultrecht:

Goals from Hans Somers (45'), Guiseppe Rossini (48'), and Tom Caluwe (63') powered FC Ultrecht to an impressive 3-0 home win over 10-man NEC Nijmegen.

Hertha Berlin Ends Stuttgart Winning Streak Win Scoreless Draw

At Stuttgart:

In Friday's lone Bundesliga match, Hertha Berlin ended second-place VfB Stuttgart's four-game league winning streak by holding the hosts to a 0-0 stalemate.