European Football: Weah slices up Neapolitan defence

GEORGE WEAH, Paris St Germain's Liberian striker, scored two fine first-half goals to give his side a 2-0 win in Napoli in the first leg of their Uefa Cup second-round tie last night, writes Rupert Metcalf.

Weah beat Napoli's goalkeeper, Giovanni Galli, with a crisp volley to put PSG ahead in the 16th minute. Galli was left stranded again 10 minutes before half-time when Weah, signed from Monaco this summer, outjumped the Neapolitan defence at a corner to find the net with a firm downward header. The Italian club, with just one Serie A win this season, were repeatedly jeered by their own fans as they spluttered through the second half.

Another French side, Auxerre, enjoyed a 5-0 win over FC Copenhagen in the Uefa Cup, with Gerald Baticle scoring a hat-trick. Torpedo Moscow, the first-round conquerors of Manchester United, found Real Madrid much tougher opponents. The Russians lost 5-2 in the Spanish capital, with Fernando Hierro hitting three inside 32 minutes. Galatasaray, of Turkey, produced a surprise with a 0-0 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt.

In the European Cup, the holders, Barcelona, drew 1-1 at CSKA Moscow, thanks to a second-half equaliser from Aitor Beguiristain which cancelled out Alexander Grishin's early goal. Milan, the Italian champions, strolled to a 1-0 win over Slovan Bratislava in Czechoslovakia. Paolo Maldini scored the 63rd-minute winner, set up by a sublime header from Marco van Basten. PSV Eindhoven, the European champions in 1988, went down to AEK Athens, losing 1-0 in Greece to a 53rd-minute goal from Vassilis Dimitriadis.

In the Cup-Winners' Cup, Monaco lost at home to Greek opponents, a late goal by Yiorgos Vaitsis giving Olympiakos Piraeus a 1-0 win. Sparta Prague's Roman Vonasek scored in the last minute to snatch a 3-2 success at the holders, Werder Bremen, in the same cup.