Valencia fail to earn win at Genk, debutants Plzen secure draw

Champions League debutants Plzen fought out a 1-1 draw with Belarusian side BATE Borisov in their Group H clash in Prague.

Valencia fail to earn win at Genk, debutants Plzen secure draw

Champions League debutants Plzen fought out a 1-1 draw with Belarusian side BATE Borisov in their Group H clash in Prague.

Marek Bakos put the hosts ahead on the stroke of half-time and Brazilian Renan equalised for the visitors in the 69th minute.

There was further good news for Chelsea in Group E as Valencia failed to break through a resolute Genk defence at the Cristal Arena in Belgium and were forced to settle for a goalless draw.

In Arsenal's group, Marseille grabbed a valuable 1-0 win over Olympiakos in Greece thanks to a 51st minute strike from Luis Gonzalez. Marseille had substitute Rod Fanni sent off in injury time.

Porto had to come from behind to see off nine-man Shakhtar Donetsk with a 2-1 victory in a controversial opener in Group G.

Brazilian Luiz Adriano fired the Ukrainians ahead after 13 minutes after Hulk had missed a penalty for the hosts, but the Porto striker finally got on the scoresheet with a 28th-minute equaliser.

Yaroslav Rakitskiy was the first Shakhtar player to see red five minutes before the break and Brazilian Kleber put Porto ahead six minutes into the second half. Dmytro Chygrynskiy was sent off for a second booking 10 minutes from time.

Also in Group G, Zenit St Petersburg blew a 1-0 lead to fall 2-1 to APOEL Nicosia in Cyprus.

After a goalless opening period Konstantin Zyryanov put the Russians ahead after 63 minutes but two goals in three minutes from Gustavo Manduca and Ailton turned the game on its head before Zenit’s Bruno Alves was sent off late on.

More in this section

Sport

Newsletter

Latest news from the world of sport, along with the best in opinion from our outstanding team of sports writers. and reporters

Cookie Policy Privacy Policy Brand Safety FAQ Help Contact Us Terms and Conditions

© Examiner Echo Group Limited