Cup holders Shakhtar outclass Partizan

Shakhtar Donetsk took control of Europa League Group J yesterday with a resounding 4-1 victory over an outclassed Partizan Belgrade at the Olympyiskyi Stadium.

Two goals in each half, with Luiz Adriano, Rodrigues Jadson and Yaroslav Rakitskiy adding to Marko Lomic's 24th-minute own-goal, ensured victory before a late consolation from Adem Ljajic.

The result leaves Shakhtar, winners of the now-defunct UEFA Cup last season, top of the standings with two wins from two, while Partizan have now lost twice. Toulouse are two points behind Shakhtar with Brugge three points further back.

Ivan Perisic's stoppage-time equaliser gave Brugge a deserved 2-2 draw at grief-stricken Toulouse.

A minute's silence was held before kick-off in honour of Brice Taton, a Toulouse fan who died this week from injuries suffered in violent clashes with Partizan Belgrade supporters a fortnight ago.

Everton shrugged off the loss of 10 first-team players to record a 2-1 victory away at Belarus's BATE Borisov thanks to Tim Cahill's goal 13 minutes from time.

In the process, David Moyes's side took a massive step towards securing a place in the next stage after their second successive win.

Cahill capped a superb comeback after Marouane Fellaini had hauled the Toffees level in the 68th minute with his first goal of the season.

It was no more than Everton deserved after Joseph Yobo became the latest casualty because of a thigh injury.

Lazio struck four times en route to a dazzling victory at Levski Sofia in Bulgaria for their first win in Europe.

Beaten by Salzburg in their opening pool game and struggling at home, the Serie A side produced a much-improved play against a toothless Levski.

Francelino Matuzalem opened the scoring before Mauro Zarate added the second on the stroke of half-time.

Second-half goals from Mourad Meghni and Tommaso Rocchi crowned a fine win for Lazio.

Claudio Ranieri got the result he was after from his Roma players after they ended a run of disappointing results with victory over CSKA to register their first points in Group E.

The win was secured with two goals in the first half from Stefano Okaka Chuka and Simone Perrotta, giving the Giallorossi the victory Ranieri had demanded following succesive draws in Serie A.

It took Roma just a minute to get their first shot away, Alessio Cerci getting on the end of Okaka's cross but sending his shot sailing over the crossbar.

The home side continued to get slightly the better of possession, twice forcing corners which, first John Arne Riise and then Simone Perrotta failed to capitalise on.

Okaka ended the stalemate after 20 minutes when he collected a pass from Marco Motta inside the area and fired beyond Ivan Karadzhov to put Roma in front.

The second came three minutes later with Perrotta turning home David Pizarro's left-wing cross from six yards.

Werder Bremen moved three points clear at the top of Group L after seeing off Athletic Bilbao despite losing Peter Niemeyer to a red card just five minutes after he appeared as a substitute.

Both sides had won their opening matches but it was Bremen who took the spoils with a hard-fought 3-1 victory after playing around 30 minutes a man down following Niemeyer's dismissal.

The German side led 2-0 at the break thanks to a brilliant volley from Aaron Hunt and a well-worked effort from Nando, and although Fernando Llorente pulled a late goal back for the Spaniards, it was not enough for the visitors and they conceded a third almost immediately when Torsten Frings slotted home from a penalty.

A David Villa penalty earned Valencia a deserved victory.

Unai Emery's side opened their Europa League Group B campaign with a draw against Lille but were well worth their win at the Mestalla last night, although they fell behind to a Sergio Floccari goal for Genoa.

Valencia stormed out of the blocks in the second half and quickfire goals from David Silva and Nikola Zigic put them in front, before Houssine Kharja drew the Italians level from the penalty spot.

The match was finally settled when Villa was tripped in the box with 10 minutes left and applied the finish from 12 yards.

Results and standings

Group A: Anderlecht vs Ajax 1-1; Timisoara vs D. Zagreb 0-3.

Standings: Anderlecht 4; D. Zagreb 3; Ajax 2; Timisoara 1.

Group B: Slavia Prague vs Lille 1-5; Valencia vs Genoa 3-2.

Standings: Valencia, Lille 4; Genoa 3; Slavia Prague 0.

Group C: Hamburg vs Hapoel TV 4-2; Celtic vs R. Vienna 1-1.

Standings: R. Vienna 4; Hamburg, Hapoel TV 3; Celtic 1.

Group D: Sporting vs H. Berlin 1-0; Ventspils vs Heerenveen 0-0.

Standings: Sporting 6; Ventspils 2; Heerenveen, H. Berlin 1.

Group E: Roma vs CSKA Sofia 2-0; Fulham vs Basel 1-0.

Standings: Fulham 4; Basel, Roma 3; CSKA Sofia 1.

Group F: D. Bucharest vs Panathinaikos 0-1; Galatasaray vs S. Graz 1-1.

Standings: Galatasaray 4; Panathinaikos, D. Bucharest 3; S. Graz 1.

Group G: L. Sofia vs Lazio 0-4; Salzburg vs Villarreal 2-0.

Standings: Salzburg 6; Lazio, Villarreal 3; L. Sofia 0.

Group H: T. Enschede vs S. Bucharest 0-0; S. Tiraspol vs Fenerbahce 0-1.

Standings: T. Enschede 4; Fenerbahce 3; S. Bucharest 2; S. Tiraspol 1.

Group I: AEK Athens vs Benfica 1-0; B. Borisov vs Everton 1-2.

Standings: Everton 6; AEK Athens, Benfica 3; B. Borisov 0.

Group J: Toulouse vs Club Bruges 2-2; S. Donetsk vs P. Belgrade 4-1.

Standings: S. Donetsk 6; Toulouse 4; Club Bruges 1; P. Belgrade 0.

Group K: FC Copenhagen vs S. Prague 1-0; PSV vs CFR Cluj 1-0.

Standings: PSV 4; CFR Cluj, Copenhagen 3; S. Prague 1.

Group L: W. Bremen vs A. Bilbao 3-1; A. Vienna vs N. Madeira 1-1.

Standings: W. Bremen 6; A. Bilbao 3; N. Madeira, A. Vienna 1.