Bakari lifts Lille to convincing victory

Lille, so narrowly beaten by Manchester United in their first-ever Champions' League game, bounced back from their late shock at Old Trafford with a 3-1 victory over Olympiakos in their adopted home at the Felix-Bollaert in nearby Lens.

Dagui Bakari and Bruno Cheyrou scored first-half goals for the French club and the defender Grégory Tafforeau netted the third.

The striker Bakari fired the first past the goalkeeper Demetris Eleftheropoulos after a scramble in the penalty area in the 33rd minute and it was a Bakari pass that the midfielder Bruno Cheyrou chested down and volleyed in for their second a minute before half-time. The substitute Tafforeau sealed Lille's victory 12 minutes from time after a poor clearance, but Olympiakos gained some consolation with a last-minute goal from Stelios Giannakopoulos.

Clinical finishing from the champions, Bayern Munich, brought them a 3-1 win away to Spartak Moscow in group H.

Two goals from their Brazilian striker Elber, including a thunderous 35-yard drive just before half-time, punished an unfortunate Spartak side who hit the bar three times, but lacked the attacking edge to turn possession into goals.

Hasan Salihamidzic opened the scoring for Bayern in the 16th minute, a cross from the Guinean midfielder Pablo Thiam finding the Bosnian unmarked at the back post. Elber fired home in the 41st minute after Spartak had hit the bar twice in two minutes. The home side finally scored with a Vasili Baranov free-kick after 64 minutes but poor defending allowed Elber to seal the win 10 minutes later.

The Rangers midfielder Bert Konterman reckons the fate of his team's season will be revealed in a just a few days' time. The Scottish season may only be eight games old and Rangers' Uefa Cup campaign yet to begin but already the pressure is on the Ibrox side.

They face the little known Russians of Anzhi Makhachkala in the Uefa Cup tomorrow in a bid to keep their European campaign alive, having bowed out of the Champions' League. And on Sunday they play hosts to Celtic, who already possess a four-point lead in the league.

Konterman said: "It's a decisive week in this season. We have got one game for the Uefa Cup and Sunday is very important as well."