AS Roma could face heavy punishment from UEFA after their Champions League clash with Dynamo Kiev had to be abandoned when referee Anders Frisk was hit by a missile at half-time on Wednesday.
The Swedish referee, who had to have several stitches inserted in the wound in his forehead, took the decision to call off the match which the Ukrainian side were leading 1-0 at the time.
PHOTO: AP
Frisk had provoked the wrath of the Italian fans when he sent off French defender Philippe Mexes after he kicked Maris Verpakovskis just after whistling for the break.
PHOTO: AP
The missile throwing incident overshadowed Bayer Leverkusen's outstanding 3-0 victory over Spanish giants Real Madrid, which avenged their defeat at their opponents' hands in the 2002 final.
There was also a measure of revenge for Juventus coach Fabio Capello as his side beat Dutch champions Ajax 1-0 in Amsterdam, Ajax having defeat Capello's then side AC Milan in the 1995 Champions League final.
Pavel Nedved's wonder goal in the 42nd minute also gave the Italian side only their second victory in nine visits to the Netherlands -- they also beat Ajax in the 1997 Champions League semifinal.
It was a mixed night in for the two English clubs against French sides as Liverpool eased past last season's Champions League finalists Monaco 2-0 -- Frenchman Djibril Cisse showing no room for sentiment as he scored their first -- while Manchester United were outclassed but came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Lyon.
United had their Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy to thank for their great escape as he scored twice in five minutes in the second-half to become their record scorer in Europe with 30, surpassing Denis Law's mark of 28.
Roma should inevitably be fined and Kiev could be awarded the three points after the controversy in the Italian capital.
Frisk received medical attention in a corridor and was later driven to hospital after being struck by what is believed to have been a cigarette lighter or a coin thrown from the crowd.
The second-half was delayed for nearly an hour before it was decided to suspend the match.
UEFA delegate Andre Francioli explained: "Frisk suspended the match because of the seriousness of his injury. He was not well enough and he was worried about his safety."
Asked what punishment might be handed out to Roma, Francioli replied: "UEFA's disciplinary commission will decide what happens."
Roma, a club that has a poor disciplinary record, may also be forced to play their remaining first phase matches at a neutral stadium.
Madrid's suspect backline caused their quarterfinal exit in this competition last season and on the evidence of their humbling by Leverkusen they have not solved the problem.
Jacek Krzynowek, Franca and Dimitar Berbatov grabbed the goals to enact sweet revenge for their final defeat in Glasgow in 2002 and pull off Leverkusen's first ever win against the Spanish giants.
Real Madrid sporting director Emilio Butragueno described the defeat as a "crushing blow".
"It's not the moment to say whose fault it is. Today all we can feel is sadness by the result," he said.
"Leverkusen were superior and deserved to win. They were better in almost all areas and have to be congratulated."
However Bayer's coach Klaus Augenthaler proved to be a hard man to please.
"We should have been 4-1 up at the break," he said.
"But we scored at the right time and demonstrated that we can play good football," added Augenthaler, who was a member of the West German side that won the 1990 World Cup.
United manager Sir Alex Ferguson may have got out of jail with a point but he made no secret that several of his players will not be starting their next Premiership clash this weekend.
"We can't ignore what happened in the first half. If we did I would not be doing my job," the Scot said.
"There were some terrible elements to our play and we had to change.
"Of course goals change games but only three of our players performed to their level tonight -- Heinze, Ronaldo and van Nistelrooy."
Van Nistelrooy said he was honored to have surpassed Law's record.
"He [Law] was a great player and what he did for this club is why it makes me so proud to have broken his record."
For his part Lyon boss Paul Le Guen believed that his side had proved a point.
"We went missing for 15 minutes but I don't want to blame the players," said the former PSG central defender, who as a player won the 1996 Cup Winners Cup.
"We showed that after a lot of changes in the squad this summer we are gathering momentum and that we are capable of raising our game against the best teams in Europe."
Monaco coach Didier Des-champs was in a decidedly different frame of mind and was highly critical of his players following their miserable performance.
"We were behind them in every aspect and defeat was the only result that you could expect after that performance," said France's 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 winning captain.
"We got what we deserved.
"I don't recall a defensive performance as bad as that last season. In the Champions League, even the slighest errors get punished and we discovered that tonight."
However if Liverpool's manager Rafael Benitez is to be believed, the next time the two sides meet could prove a harsher examination of Monaco's credentials.
"We have much work to do.
"But when you win it is very pleasing and to see the team playing so well and create so many opportunities is even better.
"We could have scored more goals and won by an even bigger margin, but we will take the result."
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MORE MEDALS: Taiwan’s men’s table tennis team added a bronze to the nation’s medal haul, while the women’s basketball team advanced to the semi-finals Taiwan yesterday secured their first e-sports medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, claiming bronze in the Naraka: Bladepoint tournament after falling 0-3 to China in the semi-finals. The Taiwanese squad, comprising Liu Tang-shiun, Chen Shang-yi, Cheng Hsu-yu, Yen Kai-en and Yeh Chih-yu, had already secured a place on the podium when they advanced to the final four as the runners-up in their preliminary group. The bronze is first e-sports medal Taiwan has won at this year’s Asian Games. Naraka: Bladepoint is a game in which the players fight each other to be the last one standing. The game incorporates martial arts-inspired melee combat. TABLE
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