LONDON, 17 September 2004 — Red Star Belgrade, one of four former European champions playing in this season’s UEFA Cup, crashed to a 4-0 defeat at Zenit St Petersburg in their first-round, first-leg match yesterday. Red Star won the 1991 European Cup when representing Yugoslavia but have fallen far from those lofty standards recently, as shown by their heavy loss to the Russian league leaders.
Now part of Serbia and Montenegro and beaten in Champions League qualifying by PSV Eindhoven, Red Star were 3-0 down at the break after Andrei Arshavin struck twice either side of an Olexander Gorshkov goal.
Alexander Kerzhakov made it four eight minutes into the second half to virtually secure the Russians a place in the new group format, which features eight groups of five teams.
Feyenoord, Benfica and Steaua Bucharest are the three other former European champions in action later yesterday, when 78 clubs do battle. One game is being played next week. In other early action, a hat trick from Denmark striker Ebbe Sand helped coachless Schalke 04 to a 5-1 demolition of Latvia’s Liepajas Metalurgs. Sand was playing his first match of the season for the German club after recovering from meningitis. Schalke are looking for a successor to coach Jupp Heynckes, who was sacked on Wednesday.
Poland’s Wisla Krakow turned a 2-0 home deficit into a 4-2 lead over Dynamo Tblisi but the Georgians struck again with a late own goal to make the final score 4-3 and leave the tie finely balanced.
In Istanbul, Trabzonspor hung on to a 3-2 lead to beat Athletic Bilbao in the first leg of their UEFA Cup first round tie after a brave fightback by the Spanish team from a 3-0 deficit.
The Turkish side stunned the visitors with two goals in rapid succession. Gokdeniz Karadeniz sent in a cross which sailed past outstretched goalkeeper Daniel Aranzubia to Bilbao defender Javi Gonzalez who mistimed a clearance and knocked the ball into his own net after 25 minutes. Trabzon extended their lead three minutes later when Aranzubia saved a shot only for the ball to rebound into the path of forward Mehmet Yilmaz who slotted it home.
Striker Karadeniz made it 3-0 halfway through the second half as he rounded the Bilbao goalkeeper after a brilliant run and guided the ball into the net.
Bilbao hit back four minutes later when midfielder Carlos Gurpegui picked up a loose ball in the area and drove a shot into the far corner. With 10 minutes remaining the unmarked Asier Del Horno headed a goal from a free-kick to make the score 3-2.
Portugal’s Benefica proved too strong for Slovakia’s Banska Bystrica in a 3-0 away victory. A brace by Simao Sambrosa (37, 65) and another by Joao Pereira (72 sealed Benefica’s dominance. Newcastle United easily defeated Israel’s Bnei Sakhnin 2-0 with Patrick Kluivert netting both the goals. The first in the third minute and the second in the 42nd minute. Two red cards were shown with the home team’s Nicky Butt and visitors’ Abbass Swan sent out in the 60th minute.
