Liverpool’s Europa League campaign continues to stutter and disappoint in equal measure after they were held 1-1 at home by Sion.
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Adam Lallana’s fourth-minute strike – his second goal in as many European matches – was cancelled out by Ebenezer Assifuah and the Reds failed to change the 1-1 scoreline in the remaining 73 minutes.
After an identical result in their opening match in Bordeaux, Reds manager Brendan Rodgers stressed their form at Anfield would be the deciding factor.
He targeted three wins at home to get them out of Group B, but having now dropped two points they may have to recover those in either Kazan at the start of the Russian winter or in the return fixture against Sion in December.
Erik Lamela’s resurgence continued in Monaco but a late Stephan El Shaarawy header meant Tottenham had to settle for a 1-1 draw in the principality.
It may have taken two seasons to find any consistency, but the £30million club-record acquisition from Roma is at last fulfilling his promise.
Lamela’s finish was a straightforward tap-in although the skill shown in starting the move was anything but, rolling the ball onto his right and playing in Nacer Chadli, who, like Harry Kane, could have netted in the first half.
But El Shaarawy linked up with fellow substitute Nabil Dirar with nine minutes remaining, beating Hugo Lloris with a header that took a slight deflection off Kieran Trippier.
The other game in Group J threw up a surprise as FK Qarabag defeated Anderlecht 1-0.
Schalke made it two wins from two matches as Franco Di Santo scored a first-half hat-trick in a 4-0 victory against Asteras Tripoli. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar completed the rout in the 84th minute.
Basle, Partizan Belgrade and Lokomotiv Moscow are also on six points after victories on Thursday evening.
Basle and Lokomotiv were both 2-0 winners, against Lech Poznan and Skenderbeu Korce respectively, while Partizan beat Augsburg 3-1 in Germany despite having Aleksandar Subic sent off just after the hour mark.
79% – Fiorentina kept 79% possession in the 1st half – the highest rate in a #UEL game since November 2012. Command. #BelenensesFiorentina
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo) October 1, 2015
Fiorentina beat Belenenses 4-0 in Portugal, while there were five goals at the Olympic Stadium in Rome as Lazio edged a 3-2 win against St Etienne, who had Robert Beric and Moustapha Bayal Sall sent off.
Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk joined Lazio on four points in Group G as they won 1-0 at Rosenborg.
Sparta Prague overcame Apoel Nicosia 2-0 and there was also a home win for AZ Alkmaar as they defeated Athletic Bilbao 2-1.
Besiktas and Sporting Lisbon drew 1-1 in the Turkish capital.
