Kovacevic penalty gives Sociedad 1-0 win over Olympiakos

A late penalty from striker Darko Kovacevic gave Real Sociedad a 1-0 win over Olympiakos in their opening Group D Champions League match at the Anoeta stadium on Wednesday.

The burly centre-forward slotted home from the spot 10 minutes from time after he had himself been brought down in the area to give the Basque side a morale-boosting victory on their return to European competition.

Sociedad had struggled to find their form for much of the match against a well-drilled Olympiakos and it was not until the end of the first half that they really came to life.

Kovacevic looked certain to score with a bullet header from Jose Barkero's corner on 44 minutes but goalkeeper Theofanis Katergiannakis managed to scramble the ball off the line.

That chance sparked Raynald Denoueix's men into life and they began the second half in more purposeful fashion as they won a succession of corners and put the Olympiakos defence under pressure for the first time in the game.

But it was not until the final stages of the match that Sociedad got the breakthrough when Kovacevic was brought down by defender Athanasios Kostoulas as he burst into the area.