Brøndby bear down on Danish summit

Brøndby IF earned a narrow home win to stay in touch at the top of the Danish Superleague, but UEFA Cup Group B rivals FC Lokomotiv Moskva's domestic season ended in severe disappointment after they were held to a costly 1-1 derby draw. US Città di Palermo and Maccabi Petach-Tikva FC also had to settle for points, but there was joy for RCD Espanyol, who climbed away from relegation danger.

FC Lokomotiv Moskva 1-1 FC Spartak Moskva

Long-time leaders Lokomotiv experienced a demoralising finale to their Russian Premier League campaign on Saturday after a derby draw meant they were edged out by opponents Spartak in the race for second place and a UEFA Champions League berth. Vladimir Eshtrekov's team, for whom Georgian striker Georgi Chelidze made his debut, fell behind just after the hour and equalised through Malkhaz Asatiani with five minutes remaining to set up a grandstand finish, but a second strike proved elusive and they will be back in the UEFA Cup for 2006/07.

"We've lost and that's it. This season is ruined - we did not qualify for the Champions League, third place is not a result for Lokomotiv," was midfield player Dmitri Khokhlov's stark assessment. The repercussions could yet impact their UEFA Cup for this season aspirations after Marat Izmailov limped off after 15 minutes, to join long-term absentees Dmitri Sychev and Vladimir Maminov on the sidelines, although his ankle injury may yet heal in time. Francisco Lima is rated doubtful for Thursday's match against Brøndby and André Stéphane Bikey could deputise again, while Dmitri Loskov is likely to start after shaking off a back problem.

Brøndby IF 1-0 Viborg FF

Brøndby maintained their pursuit of FC København at the top of the Danish Superleague with a narrow home win against the side immediately below them, Viborg, cutting the gap to four points. The second-placed hosts welcomed back forward Morten Skoubo after a six-week lay-off with a groin injury, and the 25-year-old forward quickly reminded everyone what they had been missing with his eighth goal in nine league starts this season, heading what proved to by the winner in the 34th minute of an intense encounter.

"It was more fight and hard work than good football that gave us this win, but it was positive to see that we can also manage this way of playing, as this is the style we have to adjust to," said Brøndby coach Michael Laudrup. "The way the pitches are in northern Europe at this time of the year you simply cannot have five or six successful passes in a row."

RCD Espanyol 2-0 RCD Mallorca

Espanyol coach Miguel Ángel Lotina and goalkeeper Idriss Kaméni celebrated their 50th matches at the club in style as the team climbed out of the relegation zone with a home win against Mallorca on Sunday. Raúl Tamudo scored a penalty in the 39th minute, his first league goal of the season, before Luis García doubled the advantage two minutes later. The win was only Espanyol's third in the Primera División and their first since a 1-0 victory against Real Madrid CF on 18 September. A trio of players missed the game through injury - Mauricio Pochettino (sinusitis), Armando Sá (groin) and Martín Posse (calf) - although defender Albert Lopo did return after calf and ankle problems.

Lotina said: "Mallorca attacked well, but our team was organised and defended well. The key to the match was the second goal but we have to carry on improving. We are lucky that the crowd is backing us, so now we have to work hard and move up the table, shedding the tension."

Treviso FC 2-2 US Città di Palermo

Palermo recovered after going two goals down inside the opening six minutes to salvage a share of the spoils at the Stadio Tenni on Sunday. Michele Ferri (28) and Franco Brienza (69) were both on target after Reginaldo's early double as Palermo coach Luigi Del Neri was left to question his decision to switch to an attacking 3-4-1-2 formation, with attack-minded midfielder Bienza playing behind strikers Andrea Caracciolo and Stephan Makinwa.

Del Neri, who was without Cristian Terlizzi, Salvatore Masiello, Mario Alberto Santana and Simone Pepe with muscular injuries, said: "I'm pleased about today's performance, if not the result. My players once again proved that they're a really good team: they know what they want and they know how to get it."

Maccabi Petach-Tikva FC 0-0 Bnei Yehuda Tel-Aviv FC

Maccabi stretched their winless league run to seven matches with a goalless draw at home against second-placed Beni Yehuda. The home side, who slipped to ninth in the Israeli Premier League, dominated much of the proceedings and were denied by an impressive display from visiting goalkeeper Vincent Aniema while Bnei Yehuda ended the match with ten men following the dismissal of Kobi Dajani in the final minute.

Lokembo Lokaso returned to the heart of the Maccabi midfield in place of Shay Banay, while Ismael Amar came in at right-back following a one-match suspension, and Stanislav Dubrovin replaced Shay David for the final 34 minutes after recovering from a hamstring injury. Coach Guy Luzon said: "In comparison to previous weeks, today we returned to being Maccabi Petach-Tikva. We dominated the match and should have won but after [four games] I am delighted that we managed to keep a clean sheet."