Europa League update 3/10/2011.

Starting in Portugal, SC Braga showed Liverpool FC how to edge an opponent as they finished the game 1-0 thanks to a penalty in the 18th minute from Alan. That means Liverpool will have to work their magic at home on the return leg, but a 1-0 scoreline isn't the worst it could be. PSV's home draw 0-0 with Rangers wasn't exactly the most positive result as they will now have to try and win in Scotland against a side that's very strong at home. Leverkusen's 2-3 defeat at the hands of Villarreal at home in Germany wasn't what they were looking for as Michal Kadlec had given them a 33rd minute lead before Giuseppe Rossi struck the Spaniards even in the 42nd. It was 1-1 at the half. Nilmar then put Villarreal ahead in the 70th for the first time in the game; only a minute after coming on! Gonzalo Castro then equalised for Leverkusen but to no avail: Nilmar then struck in the fourth minute of stoppage time to give Villarreal a nice edge when they welcome the Germans to Spain in the next leg. CSKA Moskva's 1-0 loss to Porto was another good result for Portuguese sides as Fredy Guarin struck home in the 70th to stop CSKA's unbeaten record while continuing Porto's visiting perfection. Twente's scoreline against Zenit was by far the most one-sided as Luuk de Jong struck twice, on either side of Denny Landzaat's 56th minute strike. Both sides had attempts on target, but Twente's were far more clinical with goalkeeper Nikolay Mihaylov having a good game in goal for the Dutch side. On the other hand for Dutch clubs, Ajax lost at home 1-0 to Spartak Moskva as Moskva's captain Alex struck in the 57th for the win and advantage into the next leg. The result does not bode well for Ajax's continued success but a 1-0 scoreline isn't unconquerable! The other big surprise today was Dynamo Kyiv's 2-0 victory over Manchester City. City didn't have as many attempts as their Ukrainian hosts and it told in the end as Andriy Shevchenko and Oleh Gusev scored for the home side. City's stars couldn't deal with the staunch team put together by Yuri Semin. Finally, Benfica came back from a one goal deficit to win against PSG at home in Portugal 2-1. Peguy Luyindula's 14th minute strike gave the French a good start but Maxi Pereira and Franco Jara struck once each to make sure the Eagles of Lisbon won out.