( dpa )- Tottenham Hotspur and Bolton Wanderers both earned victories Thursday while German duo Bayern Munich and SV Hamburg put themselves in strong positions to advance to the last 16 of the UEFA Cup.
Two-time winners Tottenham triumphed 2-1 at Slavia Prague while Bolton were 1-0 winners over fancied Spanish side Atletico Madrid in first-leg matches of the tournament's knock-out stage.
The victories made it a good start in the Round of 32 for the Premier League's contingent following Everton's 2-0 win at Norway's Brann Bergen on Wednesday.
Dimitar Berbatov (4th minute) and Robbie Keane (30) scored first-half goals for Tottenham before Slavia pulled one back in the 69th minute through David Strihavka.
Bolton travel to Madrid next week with the advantage of El-Hadj Diouf's goal in the 74th minute.
Meanwhile Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich twice came from behind to draw 2-2 with Scottish side Aberdeen, and Hamburg were 3-1 winners at FC Zurich.
Goals from Miroslav Klose and Hamit Altintop put Bayern into a strong position for the return leg in Munich next week.
However the four-time European champions were made to fight all the way by a spirited Aberdeen side depleted by injuries.
"It's quite normal that when you play internationally a team like Aberdeen can play above themselves. A 2-2 draw away from home in Europe used to be like a victory," Bayern coach Ottmar Hitzfeld said.
Aberdeen took a surprise lead in the 24th minute when Josh Walker rifled in a shot from more than 20 metres.
Bayern had already missed chances, but Klose made no mistake with a shot on the turn into the roof of the net five minutes later.
Aberdeen went back in front when Sone Aluko beat Michael Rensing - in goal for the flu-ridden Oliver Kahn - with a low shot from inside the area three minutes before half-time.
Bayern again levelled when Altintop's 54th-minute penalty shot was parried by Jamie Langfield in goal, but the Turkey international followed up to make sure at the second chance.
In Zurich, a first-half goal by David Jarolim and second-half strikes from Ivica Olic and Piotr Trochowski put SV Hamburg on the road to a comfortable victory.
Hamburg lost Dutch midfielder Rafael van der Vaart who limped off with an ankle injury in the 33rd minute to be replaced by Jose Guerrero.
The Peru striker then set up the opening two goals in the 33rd and 67th minutes and earned the foul which led to Trochowski scoring with a direct free-kick in the 77th.
Zurich notched a consolation three minutes from time when a shot by Andres Vasquez was fumbled onto the inside of the post by keeper Frank Rost and Irish referee Alan Kelly ruled the ball crossed the line.
Germany, who are hoping to get five teams into the last 16, also had struggling Bundesliga side Nuremberg in action at Benfica in a later game.
On Wednesday, Werder Bremen enjoyed a 3-0 home win over Portugal's Braga, while Bayer Leverkusen earned a goalless draw at Turkish side Galatasaray.
Meanwhile Fiorentina, Italy's lone representative in the tournament, earned a 1-0 win at Norways's Rosenberg Trondheim where Romania striker Adrian Mutu was matchwinner in the 16th minute.