French champions Lille once again let slip a lead on Tuesday as they recorded a fifth successive draw, 1-1 away to Turkish side Trabzonspor in Champions League group B.
Lille -- who had been held 2-2 by CSKA Moscow in their opening group match after leading 2-0 -- led through a first-half strike by Moussa Sow but a 75th minute penalty by Argentinian Gustavo Colman secured a point for the hosts.
The draw sees Trabzonspor top the group with four points ahead of 2010 Champions League winners Inter Milan -- who beat CSKA Moscow 3-2 earlier -- while Lille are on two points.
Guinean international Sow opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark, running onto a superb pass by Eden Hazard which a Trabzonspor defender failed to intercept before slotting the ball under the goalkeeper from a tight angle.
Lille came out fired up in the second-half with Sow using great strength to force his way through the Trabzonspor defence in the 53rd minute only to shoot wide, while his claims for a penalty were turned down.
Lille's English midfielder Joe Cole went close to doubling their lead two minutes later as Benoit Pedretti played it to him, but from only yards out he saw his shot brilliantly saved by Trabzonspor 'keeper Tolga Zengin.
Cole -- who was the champions big name signing in the close season after coming on loan from Liverpool -- then tried an audacious cross-shot on the hour mark which just drifted wide of the far post.
Florent Balmont also went close, although he knew little about it as his header from a corner clipped the far post.
However, they paid the price for those misses in the 75th minute when Mathieu Debuchy was penalised for handball and Colman stepped up to put away the penalty, which Mickael Landreau got a hand to.
Source: AFP
