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We start our round-up of action from around the world in Brazil, where Championship title-holders Sao Paulo beat second-placed Goias 3-1 to climb into the top four.

Sao Paulo, who made a poor start to the championship while they were playing the South American Libertadores Cup, have won their last five matches and gone eight without defeat.

They have 30 points from 18 matches, five behind leaders Palmeiras, who face third-placed Atletico Mineiro, and two behind Goias.

Striker Washington (pictured) put Sao Paulo in front with a header just before halftime.

With 13 minutes left, Goias defender Rafael Toloi was sent off for punching Sao Paulo's Dagoberto and playmaker Jorge Wagner and striker Borges added further goals with Bruno Meneghel pulling one back.

Sao Paulo fans chanted "The champions are back" at the end.

Former Inter Milan striker Adriano scored his 10th goal of the season to give Flamengo a 1-0 home win over Corinthians in the clash of Brazil's two most popular clubs at the Maracana.

After missing a host of chances, including one almost on the goal line when he ended up in the net, Adriano struck 13 minutes after the interval.

He latched on to a clearance from a long range shot by former Manchester United player Kleberson to shoot in off the crossbar.

Flamengo are in eight place and Corinthians, without Ronaldo who is recovering from a broken hand, 11th, having slid down the standings without a win in their last five matches.

Coritiba sacked coach Rene Simoes after their 3-1 home defeat by Cruzeiro left them in 18th place. He is the 24th coach to lose his job in the championship this season.

Mexico

Mexican champions Pumas UNAM remained rooted to the foot of the table after a 3-0 defeat at Toluca gave them their third loss in three matches of the new Apertura championship.

Toluca retained top place, equal on a maximum nine points with Pachuca, 2-0 winners away to Atlante in Cancun.

The win was not, however, as easy as the scoreline suggested.

Pumas' Brazilian coach Ricardo Ferretti, whose side have yet to score and have conceded seven goals, was left to rue his side's lack of finishing power.

Defender Edgar Duenas opened the scoring just past the half hour with a header from midfielder Israel Lopez's left cross.

Paraguayan Dario Veron should have equalised but shot wide with only goalkeeper Hernan Cristante to beat.

Toluca went two up just before halftime when 20-year-old Nestor Calderon, who was set up by Brazilian-born Mexico international Antonio Naelson, scored his fourth goal in three games.

Colombian Vladimir Marin secured the win eight minutes from time with a well-placed left-footed shot.

Former Derby County striker Emanuel Villa scored once in each half to give Cruz Azul a 2-0 win over Monterrey, their first home victory since January.

America, Mexico's biggest club, got their first win, 1-0 away to Indios Juarez with a goal from midfielder Angel Reyna who profited from a mistake by Argentine defender Javier Malagueno two minutes from the end. They have four points.

Colombia

Deportivo Cali won the derby against America 3-2 despite the dismissal in the 75th minute of defender Pablo Escobar, with the score 2-2.

Juan Carlos Marino scored the winner with a penalty in the 89th after defender Pedro Tavima brought down substitute Diego Alvarez.

America coach Diego Umana resigned, according to reports, although the club will try to persuade the coach, who steered America to the Clausura title at the of last year, to change his mind.

"I'm off, I can't take any more, I don't want to get ill," Umana said.

The weekend's red card count was 11 in nine matches after a crazy Saturday of seven in only three games.

Meanwhile, the president of the Colombian Football Federation (FCF), Luis Bedoya, fractured his hip on an exercising device.

The 49-year-old, FCF head since 2006, suffered the accident as a guest of Santa Fe chairman Eduardo Farfan at a country estate outside Bogota.

Chile

Audax Italiano's 2-1 win over Universidad de Concepcion gave them 13 points out of a possible 15. They are a point ahead of Everton who beat Nublense 1-0.

Argentine striker Sergio Comba scored twice as former Spain striker Juan Antonio Pizzi's Santiago Morning upset Colo Colo 2-1 for a share of third place on nine points with Union Espanola, Universidad Catolica and Palestino.

Universidad Catolica, down to 10 men from the 42nd minute when sweeper Mauricio Centeno was sent off for insulting the referee, were held 0-0 at home by O'Higgins.

Peru

Universitario celebrated their 85th anniversary with a 1-0 home win over mid-table Melgar to retain their one-point lead over Juan Aurich.

Peru international Gianfranco Labarthe scored the only goal in the 57th minute from Piero Alva's cross and Melgar midfielder Edson Aubert was sent off in the 72nd minute for a bad tackle on Universitario substitute Carlos Orejuela.

Colombian forward Edison Chara scored two first half goals as Juan Aurich beat Sport Huancayo 3-1.

Universitario have 49 points from 25 matches, Juan Aurich 48, Alianza 44 after a 2-2 draw away to Total Chalaco and Sport Huancayo 43.

Venezeula

Promoted Trujillanos and top-flight newcomers Yaracuyanos both won away in the Apertura championship on the opening weekend of the new season.

Brazilian Flavio de Oliveira's 62nd minute free kick goal, five minutes after coming on as a substitute, gave Trujillanos a 1-0 win over Aragua. Yaracuyanos came from 2-1 down to win 3-2 at Centro Italo.

Substitute Jonathan Parra, who scored Yaracuyanos' 83rd-minute winner, said: "It is the first time a team from Yaracuy have been in the first division and what better way to start than winning."

Forward Armando Maita scored twice as Deportivo Tachira beat 10-man Andean rivals Estudiantes 3-0. Engelberth Briseno was sent off for fighting five minutes before halftime. Champions FC Caracas did not play.

Bolivia

In a match interrupted for eight minutes by a power failure, Oriente Petrolero beat Real Potosi 1-0 with a header by new signing Leonardo Medina, who made it two in two games, from midfielder Gualberto Mojica's cross from the goal line.

Oriente Petrolero and Bolivar, who beat Universidad de Sucre 2-1, are the only unbeaten teams after five matches of the Clausura championship.

Paraguay

Champions Cerro Porteno were held 1-1 at Sol de America in the Clausura championship.

A Pablo Velazquez penalty one minute from time gave modest Rubio Nu a 1-0 home win over big guns Olimpia.

Uruguay

Friendly is not the right description for the pre-season meeting of Uruguay's Penarol and Newell's Old Boys of Argentina, which was abandoned after 40 minutes because of a players' brawl, according to reports.

"The Penarol supporters are reminded that this is a friendly match," Penarol announced over the loudspeakers when fans threw firecrackers at the Argentine team's players warming up before kickoff in Maldonado.

With 37 minutes on the clock and the Uruguayans leading 1-0, Penarol midfielder Julio Mozzo landed a hefty punch on Newell's defender Diego Mateo after they both went for a high ball, reports said.

That turned into a free-for-all, with some players hitting out and others trying to calm team mates, and the referee soon abandoned the game.

Holland

PSV Eindhoven are still looking for their first win of the season after sharing the points with Twente Enschede in a 1-1 draw in the Dutch league.

Twente pushed aside memories of their last-minute Champions League elimination by Portugal's Sporting in the third qualifying round by opening the scoring in the 19th minute through Brazilian Douglas.

Six minutes later Balazs Dzsudzsak replied for the visitors.

After two matches, only Ajax Amsterdam and Utrecht have scored the maximum six points. Twente have four, while PSV who also drew their opening match, have two.

Champions AZ Alkmaar, 2-0 winners over Sparta Rotterdam, have three points.

Japanese international Keisuke Honda struck twice to earn newcomers VVV-Venlo a 2-2 home draw against ADO Den Haag, who had taken an early two-goal lead but ended with nine men after red cards for Karim Soltani and Ricky van den Bergh.

Elsewhere, Utrecht beat Willem II Tilburg 1-0, while there were goalless draws in the games between NAC Breda and Heracles Almelo and Vitesse Arnhem and Feyenoord.

Switzerland

Basel goalkeeper Franco Costanzo has apologised for an astonishing incident in which he attacked a team mate on the pitch and grabbed him by the hair.

Costanzo lost his temper at the end of Basel's 1-1 draw at home to arch-rivals and titleholders FC Zurich .

Television pictures showed the Argentine remonstrating furiously with team mate Beg Ferati as the final whistle went.

Ferati pushed Costanzo away but this enraged the goalkeeper even more. He then put his hand on Ferati's head and grabbed him by the hair before team mates and at least one opponent came in to separate the pair.

"I'm sorry, I apologise," the former River Plate and Alaves goalkeeper said.

"Everyone knows me and it's the first time in my career I've done a stupid thing like this. It's a situation we have to sort out in the dressing room."

Young Boys continued their unbeaten start to the season with a 4-2 victory at home to Bellinzonam, while second-placed Luzern kept the pressure on the leaders with a 2-1 win over Neuchatel Xamax.

St Gallen moved above Basel into third sport after a 3-1 win away at Grasshoppers, as Thorsten Fink's side were held at home.

In the other fixture of the weekend, bottom-placed Aarau salvaged a 1-1 draw away to Sion.

Reuters