SPAIN. Four days after beating archrival and defending champ Barcelona in league play, Real Madrid was held to an embarrassing 1-1 tie at Third Division Ecija in their first-leg game of the Spanish Cup round of 32. Real, which hosts the second leg, rested several regulars.

GERMANY. In the German Cup, two-time defending double winner Bayern Munich snuck through with an uninspiring 1-0 win over Kaiserslautern. ... Hertha Berlin was leading Stuttgart Kickers, 2-0, when the game was abandoned in the 86th minute after a linesman was struck with something thrown from the stands of the Stuttgart stadium. Upset in second round play were First Division teams Moenchengladbach, Bayer Leverkusen and Schalke 04.

ENGLAND. Struggling Premier League club West Ham was ousted from the League Cup with a 2-1 loss at third-tier Chesterfield. ... Manchester United also struggled against a third-tier team, but overcame Crewe with a 2-1 thanks to a last-minute overtime goal by teenager Kieran Lee, who was making his first-team debut. ... Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech, who suffered a skull fracture during a collision with Reading forward Stephen Hunt, was discharged from the hospital on Tuesday after a 10-day stay that included surgery to insert metal plates in his head.

ITALY. In midweek Serie A action, Inter Milan and Palermo kept their joint lead. Inter beat Livorno, 4-1, as Swede Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored his first of the season. Palermo beat Sicilian rival Messina, 2-1.

BRAZIL: Defending champion Corinthians, one of Brazil's richest clubs since its partnership deal with London-based Media Sports Investments in late 2004, moved out of the relegation zone with a 1-0 Sao Paulo derby win over Palmeiras on a goal by Marcelo Mattos.

HONDURAS. U.S. CONCACAF rival Honduras is courting Diego Maradona, who has never had a successful coaching stint, for its national team coaching job. Honduras' last high-profile coach hiring, Bora Milutinovic, lasted less than a year. Milutinovic is reportedly in negotiations for the Jamaica job.

GUATEMALA. U.S. coach Tim Hankinson's hopes of guiding Guatemala to the U-17 World Cup for the first time in that nation's history ended with a last-place finish in the five-team Central American Zone preliminary qualifying tournament. The Chapines lost to Costa Rica, El Salvador and Panama, and tied Nicaragua while getting outscored 4-11. Costa Rica and El Salvador advanced to the final round of qualifying.