Round-up: Berbatov sees off Cyprus

Adjust font size:

NICOSIA, Cyprus -- Striker Dimitar Berbatov scored twice as Bulgaria beat hosts Cyprus 3-0 in the final of an international tournament in Nicosia on Wednesday.

Berbatov opened the scoring with a penalty in the 44th minute after Alexis Garpozis had handled in the area and the Tottenham Hotspur player added the third in the 86th from close range.

In between, Blagoy Georgiev clocked up the second goal in the 68th minute from close in after the ball came back off the crossbar.

The game started at full pace but quickly found the Cypriots on the back foot as Bulgaria's defence gave them little room for manoeuvre.

Cyprus missed an open chance in the 90th minute when a shot from Ioannis Okkas, who plays for Olympiakos in Greece, fired over the crossbar from two meters out.

Georgia defeat Turkey

A header from Davit Siradze powered Georgia to a 1-0 win over Turkey in Tbilisi.

Siradze headed in 15 minutes from time following a corner to record Georgia's first ever victory over their Black Sea neighbours to the delight of a near capacity 50,000-strong home crowd at the Boris Paichadze stadium.

The Turks had several chances in the second half but were denied by the fine play of Georgia keeper Georgi Lomaia.

The match was marred by a brawl at the end of the second-half when players from both sides squared off near the Georgia goal, although nobody was sent off.

Late goals sink Moldova

Two goals in the last quarter-of-an-hour gave Romania a 2-0 win over Moldova in their friendly international in Bucharest.

Rapid Bucharest striker Ionut Mazilu scored his first goal for the national team after 76 minutes while Fiorentina forward Adrian Mutu headed home his 22nd goal in his 50th international three minutes from time.

Romania met Moldova in a hastily-arranged match after their scheduled friendly against Italy was cancelled following the ban imposed by Italian authorities after the death of a policeman in Catania last week.

Romania meet the Netherlands in their next Euro 2008 Group G qualifier on March 24 while Moldova face Malta in a Group C game.

Deflection spares Austrian blushes

Euro 2008 co-hosts Austria came from a goal down to salvage a 1-1 draw and spare their blushes against Malta in Ta'qali.

Austrian skipper Andreas Ivanschitz saved his side from what would have been an embarrasing defeat early in the second half when his free-kick from just outside the penalty area took a deflection off the Maltese defensive wall and squirmed past the wrong-footed Malta goalkeeper Justin Haber.

Austria had been distinctly second best to a Malta team whose hopes of celebrating 50 years of international football with a victory had grown after their skipper Gilbert Agius fired them ahead after eight minutes.

Swooping onto a loose ball outside the Austrian box after a corner from George Mallia had been partially cleared, Agius swivelled before hitting a delightful shot that sailed into the top-right corner of Jurgen Macho's net.

Austria's best scoring opportunities came from an early shot by Thomas Prager which was saved by Malta goalkeeper Justin Haber and an effort from Rene Aufhauser which finished wide.

Off-form Sweden lose in Egypt

Sheffield United's recent signing Ahmed Fathi scored in the second half to help African champions Egypt ease past below-par Sweden 2-0 in their friendly in Cairo.

Striker Amr Zaki had sent the hosts into the lead with a first-half header and Fathi sealed the victory with a powerful shot three minutes before time.

The match marked the 50th anniversary of the founding of the African Football Confederation (CAF) and was attended by the organisation's president Issa Hayatou.

The goals were among the few sparkling moments of a match dominated by ineffective passing and toothless attacks except the last 20 minutes when the hosts upped the tempo and scored their second goal.

Injury-hit Croatia defeat Norway

Injury-ridden Croatia muscled their way to a 2-1 victory over Norway in Rijeka.

Half of the regular Croatian starting line-up was missing in the first-ever game between the two countries, but their replacements showed that coach Slaven Bilic can count on a wide choice of players in the coming Euro 2008 qualifiers.

Basel forward Mladen Petric netted from the close range a superb left-wing cross by Marko Babic of Bayer Leverkusen to give Croatia the lead in the 26th minute.

Dinamo Zagreb's attacking midfielder Luka Modric put the home side two up with a clinical shot from the edge of the box 12 minutes later.

Croatia also dominated in the second half, but failed to convert several opportunities.

Norway were toothless for most of the game, but lack of concentration among the home defenders towards the end had Croatia fearing for the outcome after midfielder Petter Vaagan Moen found himself alone in front of the goalkeeper and easily scored four minutes from time.

Czechs win in Brussels

A goal in each half was enough to secure a 2-0 win for the Czech Republic over Belgium in Brussels.

The visitors, unbeaten in their Euro 2008 qualifying group, dominated throughout and could have inflicted a heavier defeat on the home side, who ended the game with 10 men after defender Anthony Vanden Borre was dismissed five minutes before the end.

Jan Koller put the Czechs ahead after six minutes when he toe-poked home a corner after a mistake by Belgian central defender Daniel Van Buyten.

Koller turned provider for his side's second goal when he slipped the ball through to substitute Marek Kulic in the 74th minute.

Belgium's miserable night was compounded when Anderlecht defender Vanden Borre received his marching orders from Polish referee Jacek Granat for pulling back Kulic when the Czech striker was bearing down on goal.

Belgium next travel to Portugal on March 24 for a Group A Euro 2008 qualifier, while the Czechs entertain fellow Group D leaders Germany.

USA power to win

Second half goals from Jimmy Conrad and Landon Donovan gave the United States a 2-0 friendly victory over Mexico on Wednesday, handing interim coach Bob Bradley a boost in his bid to get the job on a permanent basis.

The win extend the U.S.'s unbeaten run on home soil against their neighbors to eight games.

Mexico have not scored away to the U.S since their win in March, 1999.

Get up-to-the minute news from CNN CNN.com gives you the latest stories and video from the around the world, with in-depth coverage of U.S. news, politics, entertainment, health, crime, tech and more.

---

• Hosts South Africa drawn against France
• Star-studded cast comes together in 'Nine'
• Jury begins deliberating in Amanda Knox case
• Obama approval rating below 50 percent
• Amnesia patient's brain dissected

• Irish PM to quit over payments scandal
• NATO chief: Afghan troop increase likely
• Militants hunted as calm retuns to Basra
• Pressure on Bush to skip Olympics
• BA sending misplaced T5 baggage to Milan

• Recruiting suicide bombers (2:50)
• London was lucky (2:36)
• Cars in London rigged as bombs (3:48)
• Second explosives-packed car foun (2:32)
• Soviet culture returns (3:47)