Doumbia double snatches draw for CSKA
442 Staff - Wednesday 14 September 2011, 22:34
LILLE - A late double by Seydou
Doumbia cost Lille dearly in their Champions League Group B
opener as CSKA Moscow snatched a 2-2 draw at the French
champions on Wednesday.
Striker Doumbia struck in the 72nd and 90th minute to steal
a point after Lille had taken a clear lead thanks to Moussa Sow
and Benoit Pedretti, who scored either way of the interval.
In their first Champions League game since the 2006/07
season, Lille dominated and played the kind of free-flowing
football that led them to the Ligue 1 title last season but they
proved too shaky in the closing stages.
They will next travel to Trabzonspor, who stunned 2010
champions Inter Milan 1-0 in the San Siro, in two weeks' time.
"After our second goal we played too cautiously," midfielder
Pedretti told reporters.
"We are learning, but it's a bad result. Next time we'll
have to be good for 90 minutes, not just 70."
Although they were without injured centre-back Aurelien
Chedjou and forward Dimitri Payet, Lille got off to a lively
start with Belgian prodigy Eden Hazard proving a constant threat
to the visitors' defence.
Striker Sow blew a couple of clear chances after 20 minutes
when he skied a close-range attempt over the bar before missing
the target after dribbling past keeper Vladimir Gabulov.
Using a cautious approach, CSKA banked on counter attacks
and came close eight minutes before the break when Aleksandrs
Caunas's shot from inside the box went just wide.
At the end of a sharp move Hazard was denied by Gabulov, who
pulled off a great save to keep his team afloat, but he was
helpless when Sow found the back of the net with a back-heel
from a Pedretti cross on the stroke of half-time.
Lille continued their dominance after the interval but CSKA
were dangerous on the break as a Zoran Tosic attempt smashed
against Mickael Landreau's right post in the 55th minute
following a quick counter attack.
Two minutes later, however, Pedretti connected with a clever
pass from Florent Balmont and unleashed a shot into the top
corner to double their tally.
Lille then sat back and paid the price when Ivory Coast's
Doumbia overpowered defender David Rozehnal in the box before
firing past Landreau in the 72nd minute.
He did it again in the last minute, bursting into the area
to equalise with a powerful strike that went into Landreau's top
right-hand corner.
England winger Joe Cole, on loan from Liverpool, came off
the bench in the 77th minute and had a chance to hand Lille a
last-gasp victory but his angled shot was perfectly blocked by
Gabulov before the stunned home players left the pitch heads
down.