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Dopo l’ entusiasmante primo turno della fase a gironi della “Champions’League”, dove tutte le quattro formazioni inglesi hanno vinto ed i Glasgow Rangers hanno portato a casa un punto importante sul difficile campo dello Stoccarda, l’ “Europa League” ha proposto un bilancio con luci ed ombre. E’ andata benissimo all’ Everton ( supporters in foto ) che ha rifilato un poker ai greci dell’ AEK e discretamente anche al Fulham che ha impattato sul terreno del CSKA Sofia. Il Celtic, invece, è stato sconfitto a Tel Aviv dagli israeliani dell’ Hapoel, i quali si sono aggiudicati la gara con il punteggio di due reti ad una.

Yobo (centre) set Everton on their way with a fine header

Everton opened their Europa League Group I account by dismantling outclassed AEK Athens in a game marred by two second-half red cards.

The hosts took an early lead through Joseph Yobo’s header and soon added a second through Sylvain Distin.Stephen Pienaar rifled in a stunning third shortly before the break, with Jo adding a late fourth.AEK had Carlos Araujo red carded after 54 minutes and Louis Saha followed late on for raising his hand to a defender.Saha barely made contact with the face of AEK defender Juanfran, who made a meal of the incident, in stoppage time but it was right in front of the referee and he had no hesitation in dismissing the French striker.

Everton have a had a sticky start to the Premier League season but from the opening whistle they were a cut above their Greek visitors.Jack Rodwell and Tim Cahill took control of midfield and with Pienaar looking lively down the right and Jo causing a makeshift AEK defence plenty of problems, it was only a matter of time before the goals started flowing.Just before kick-off Everton confirmed they had signed Australia captain Lucas Neill and the right-back was in the stands to see two of his new defensive comrades get on the scoresheet inside the opening 17 minutes.The opener came after 10 minutes from a corner earned when AEK keeper Sebastian Saja could only turn a Pienaar drive round the post.Everton boss David Moyes had given Diniyar Bilyaletdinov his first start and the Russian took no time to illustrate his quality, delivering a fine corner to the far post where Yobo, captain for the day, thundered his header home.The Greeks’ cause was not helped when they lost Gerlando Alves to injury and they soon found themselves two goals behind.AEK survived one corner but the assistant positioned behind the goalline – a new initiative being trialled in the Europa League – correctly indicated Everton should be awarded anotherWhen the ball was swung into the six yard box the visitors’ defence was once again thrown into disarray and although Marouane Fellaini’s intial effort was blocked, Distin was lurking beyond the far post and reacted first to score.Stung by the two goals AEK tried to hit back but they were restricted to long-range strikes from Pantelis Kafes and Tam Nsaliwa, a Malawai-born Canadian international who has just received a German passport, which both fizzed over.Jo twice threatened with headers as Everton went back on the attack and, after Grigoris Makos shot into Howard’s arms from distance, the hosts added a third.When Pienaar picked the ball up 30 yards out there looked to be little on but the Athens defence failed to close him down and the South Africa midfielder drilled a low shot into the corner past the despairing dive of Saja.That prompted the AEK travelling fans to turn their backs on the game and amuse themselves with a bout of scarf waving, and their day got no better after the break.Everton took off Tim Cahill, who had picked up a yellow card, and Bilyaletdinov, with Leon Osman and Yakubu respectively coming on.It made little difference to the flow of the game as the hosts continued to enjoy a stranglehold on possession and any remote chance the visitors had of getting back into the game was ended when Carlos Araujo was red carded 10 minutes into the half for kicking out at Distin.With the result already in the bag Everton struggled to produce the penetration of the first half.Rodwell and Osman both went close before Ismael Blanco shot wide for AEK.Saha, on for Pineaar, then turned a Leighton Baines cross over the bar but the hosts finally got their fourth goal when Jo spun sharply and rifled home from 12 yards to confirm Everton’s superiority.A pleasing night for the hosts had some of the shine taken off it when Saha received his marching orders in stoppage time, but they will still have been pleased to have started their European campaign in convincing style.

( BBC Sport )

Celtic could not survive sustained Hapoel pressure in the second period

Celtic surrendered the lead as Hapoel claimed a deserved win in their Europa League Group C opener in Israel.

Following a slow start, Georgios Samaras fired Celtic ahead on 25 minutes with a well-taken low strike.The Scots controlled the rest of the half, but Hapoel emerged for the second period re-energised.With the visitors pinned back, Nemanja Vucicevic slammed in the leveller before Maaran Lala stabbed in the winner from close range on 88 minutes.The defeat will leave a sour taste in the mouth for Celtic after leading for so long in the game, but their second-half display left a lot to be desired.As a result of the reverse Tony Mowbray’s men sit in third place in the group as Rapid Vienna recorded a 3-0 win over German league leaders Hamburg.Having proven against Dinamo Moscow that they are capable of winning away from home after a barren six years of on their travels optimism was high that Celtic could repeat the feat against Hapoel, who have had an unremarkable start to their domestic campaign.

But in the stifling Israeli heat the hosts began, perhaps understandably, with much more pace than the Scottish visitors.Hapoel’s Birbras Natcho in particular looked energetic darting forward from midfield and with less than a minute on the clock he had a headed chance which he was unable to keep down.

Celtic, with a cautious 4-5-1 formation, had most of their early possession along the back four as the Israeli team retreated to defend en masse.But the Glasgow club were denied the lead on 11 minutes when goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama made a dextrous save to tip Samaras’ header on to the bar from Shaun Maloney’s corner.However, Celtic had Artur Boruc to thank at the other end for staying on level terms when he saved low from Vucicevic after a slide-rule pass had split the Scots’ defence.

Samaras’ goal was not enough to give Celtic victory

With 25 minutes played Celtic made the breakthrough.Gary Caldwell, playing in a holding midfield role, picked out Samaras with a long pass, which the lone striker controlled on his chest before lashing low inside the far post.Celtic looked comfortable following the goal, stringing passes together and slowing the match down, as Hapoel’s early eagerness seemed to dissipate.Zurab Menteshashvili stung Boruc’s palms with a long-range effort towards the end of the half.But a good first-half showing for Celtic was somewhat sullied by Aiden McGeady picking up an unnecessary booking for reacting to a foul.Soon after the restart Uefa’s extra official behind the Celtic goal remained impassive amid Hapoel penalty claims when a ball into the box flicked off Stephen McManus’ arm.And moments later Natcho’s calls for a spot-kick were rewarded with a yellow card for a theatrical dive with no defender nearby.But Hapoel had started the second period in the same vein as the first, and Boruc was again called upon to parry away a fierce Gil Vermuth shot.As the half wore on Celtic posed less and less of a threat and eventually they were undone.

Right-winger Samuel Yeboah’s ball across goal was only knocked weakly into the path of Vucecevic, and the Serbian midfielder cracked the ball into the roof of the net from 10 yards.In the closing 15 minutes, Celtic survived a number of scares as Hapoel looked the more likely side to claim victory.And agonisingly for Celtic, Lala lunged on the the six yard box to knock Vermuth’s pass into the net for a deserved victory, as the visitors paid the price for a largely toothless second-half display.

( BBC Sport )

Kamara celebrates his crucial second-half equaliser with John Pantsil in Bulgaria

Diomansy Kamara’s second-half strike ensured a much-changed Fulham marked their Europa League group stages bow with a precious point at CSKA Sofia.

The Senegalese striker latched on to a ball over the top to round the keeper and slot home as Fulham held off an effervescent Sofia side in Bulgaria.The hosts had taken the lead when Michel lashed home from 20 yards.And they could have won it had Fulham keeper David Stockdale not tipped Yordan Todorov’s drive over the bar.A point was always going to be a valuable one for Fulham as they made their first appearance in the group stages of a European competition in the club’s history, but Sofia’s hussle-and-bustle approach almost ensured the Londoners were forced to make the long trip home with nothing.

As it was, Kamara rounded off a fine individual display with a very well taken goal to reward Fulham’s determination and just about justify boss Roy Hodgson’s decision to rest nine first-team players.This time last season, Aston Villa boss Martin O’Neill made eight changes for his side’s Uefa Cup clash against CSKA Moscow and they subsequently lost 2-0 and were dumped out of the competition.But that did not deter Hodgson, with only keeper Stockdale and defender John Pantsil surviving from Sunday’s Premier League win over Everton.It did, however, lead to a disjointed opening from the Londoners, and CSKA Sofia were by far the better starters at the Vasil Levski National, with Ivan Stoyanov cutting in from the right and whipping a left-footed shot wide of the far post inside the first three minutes.

The hosts controlled the early stages, with Stoyanov and Spas Delev both impressing and Fulham strikers Erik Nevland and Kamara increasingly isolated up front.Chances were very much at a premium, though, and despite the odd occasionally spicy tussle in midfield, the Cottagers slowly took the sting out of the game and settled into their rhythm.

And they almost made the most of their best period of the half just before the break with the best chance of the half, Simon Davies latching on to Jonathan Greening’s deflected cross and forcing home keeper Ivan Karadzhov into a low save from 12 yards out.CSKA kicked off the second half with renewed adventure and ambition, and launched passionate appeals for a penalty when Kosta Yanev’s cross bounced up onto Stephen Kelly’s arm, only for the referee – aided by the new goal-line assistant in place for the first time in European competition – to correctly wave away the appeals.The hosts did not have to wait long to break the deadlock, though, and substitute Michel – nicknamed Michel Platini – was the goalscorer, collecting Marquinhos’s knock-down, taking a touch, and sweeping home on the half volley from 20 yards out.It could have been a killer blow for Fulham, but they responded brilliantly and were back on level terms within three minutes.