Rovers Rot as Rivals Rise.

Not only did Rovers woefully concede their third straight league defeat but also they showed signs of a side, tired and out of form.

To make matters worse, Rovers` next two opponents in the UEFA Cup, Feyenoord and A S Nancy were once again in terrific form, both completing 2-1 victories. The other two sides in Group E, whom Rovers have already swept aside managed draws.

It is fair to say that Rovers are in the worse possible form at the moment.

Starting with the next group opponents, Feyenoord, Rovers will be concerned about the distant parallel that is forming between the respective sides performances.

A few weeks ago Feyenoord were resoundingly thumped 4-0 in front of their own fans by bitter rivals Ajax. Since then Erwin Koeman`s side have won three on the trot, including the game against Vitesse Arnheim at the weekend, to move into sixth in the division. Goals from Andre Bahia and Theo Lucius were enough for the home side.

However, they were dealt a blow at the weekend when it was confirmed influential defender Ron Vlaar will be absent for another four weeks following the broken bone in his foot that he suffered earlier in the season.

A S Nancy also won at the weekend. They impressively beat Bordeaux 2-1 with goals from defender Sebastien Puygrenier and a second half penalty from Moncef Zerka. Sandwiched in between was a goal from former Nottingham Forest striker Jean Claude Darcheville for Bordeaux.

ASNL now still sit in second place, ten points behind Lyon however, manager Pablo Correa isn`t getting carried away. He is quoted on Skysports saying:

"I am happy to be second, but the problem is we are just at game 12. Anyway, it is nice and I take my hat off to my players, who have gone second with a lot of talent and desire."

Wisla Krakow, who look as far out of the competition as Rovers are in the next round, managed to stay top in Poland despite a 2-2 draw against Grolcin Grodzisk. Grolcin raced into a two-goal lead before being pegged back by a sprightly Wisla side. Goals from Kryszalowicz and Pawel ensured Wisla enjoyed a share of the spoils.

Finally, Rovers` victims on Thursday, Basel, continued to curse their luck after only managing a 1-1 draw against F C Thun. The impressive Eduardo came off the bench to slot home an equaliser with just eight minutes remaining. Basel remain 5th in the league as their season shows no signs of improving.

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