Crowd trouble mars Nancy victory

NANCY’S UEFA Cup Group E clash against Feyenoord was suspended for more than 30 minutes last night after trouble broke out in the stands.

The French side were leading 3-0 when the referee sent both teams to the dressing rooms.

Sebastien Puygrenier gave Nancy the lead on 22 minutes and Luiz Andre Bahia’s own goal doubled their advantage on 42 minutes.

Monsef Zerka 66th-minute penalty made it 3-0 before the match was suspended on 80 minutes before eventually being completed.

Espanyol maintained their unbeaten start to their UEFA Cup campaign with a comfortable win over Ajax, who are also virtually assured of a place in the knockout stage.

Espanyol top Group F while Ajax remain third level on points with fourth-placed Sparta, but Ajax still have a game to play.

Walter Pandiani handed Espanyol into a first-half lead before Ferran Coro sealed the win in the closing stages.

In the same group a goal from defender Tomas Repka was enough to ensure Sparta Prague claimed the bragging rights against Austria Vienna, although they are still unlikely to progress to the next stage.

Celta Vigo’s hopes of a place in the UEFA Cup Round of 32 were given a boost with victory over Fenerbahce.

Fabian Canobbio scored the only goal of the game. The result means Celta leapfrog their opponents to move second in Group H, although both teams will still need points from their final matches in two weeks.

Pawel Brozek’s double put 10-man Wisla Krakow in with a chance of qualifying for the knockout phase with a home win over Basle in Group E.

Basle slipped to the bottom of the group while Wisla must wait until the last round of games to learn their fate.

Mladen Petric fired the visitors into an early lead but a quick response from Brozek and a second half goal from Jean Paulista put the home side in charge. Brozek grabbed another in the closing stages as Wisla picked up their first points of the competition.

Panathinaikos sealed their place in the last 32 of the UEFA Cup following a 0-0 draw against 10-man Rapid Bucharest in Group G in Athens at the Olympic Stadium.

Paris St Germain held out for draw in an insipid clash against Mlada Boleslav in Group G.

Both sides can still progress despite occupying the bottom two places.