AMSTERDAM – Aron Jóhannsson got back to striking form on Sunday, bagging both AZ Alkmaar goals in a 2-2 draw at Feyenoord.
The US forward opened the scoring with a 12-yard one-timer at the end of a brisk counterattack. After the hosts had flipped the scoreline, Jóhannsson coolly pulled AZ level with a 57th-minute penalty kick that had been earned by Roy Beerens.
The brace gave Jóhannsson, who departed in the 89th minute, nine league goals and 14 across all competitions this term. However, AZ slipped out of the top spot to second place, falling a point behind Saturday winners Vitesse.
Across the North Sea in England's Premier League, Geoff Cameron and Stoke City blew a two-goal lead before rallying for a 3-3 draw at Swansea City.
The former Houston Dynamo ace had an up-and-down day for the visitors. Cameron's outlet pass sprung the play from which Stoke opened the scoring, but he then suffered varying degrees of culpability on all three Swans strikes. The right back's mark headed home their first, he lost the crosser on the second and was only slightly to blame on their last. Despite remaining winless in eight EPL matches, the Potters climbed out of the relegation zone to 17th place.
Elsewhere, Brad Friedel was outshined by away netminder Tim Krul in Tottenham's 1-0 home loss to Newcastle.
While the Magpies custodian cleaned up with 14 saves, Friedel notched two and had no chance on Loïc Rémy's decider. The defeat, Friedel's first in five decisions on the overall campaign, dropped Spurs to seventh place.
Sunderland striker Jozy Altidore worked 13 relief minutes to help close out a 1-0 home win over Manchester City at the Stadium of Light. With their fourth consecutive shutout victory over the Citizens, the Black Cats moved out of the league basement.
Over in Serie A, Michael Bradley and AS Roma conceded the 1-1 equalizer to visiting Sassulo deep into stoppage time.
Having come on as a 33rd-minute substitution, the US midfielder enjoyed a solid outing until the waning seconds of the game, as Bradley missed a chance to clear just before the visitors scored to force the league leaders to settle for a second straight share.
Turning to Ligue 1, Alejandro Bedoya had a hand in two goals as surprise package Nantes held firm in fourth place with a 3-0 waltz past home side Bordeaux.
Lined up on right wing for this one, the No. 19 shirt had his bicycle-kick cross tipped through for Vincent Bessat to open moments before intermission. The Canaries capped the scoring when Filip Dordevic cleaned up the rebound of a Bedoya shot in the 64th minute.
Next door in Belgium's Jupiler League, Sacha Kljestan put in his usual 90 minutes of midfield work as holders Anderlecht moved to within three points of the summit by edging hosts Genk, 1-0. Though the American saw a three-game scoring streak end, his side found the net late to record their third straight league victory.
To the north in Denmark's Superliga, Conor O'Brien and Odense BK suffered the indiginity of a 3-1 home loss against FC Vestsjælland. Now winless in three, OB slipped three rungs to eighth place.
In nearby Norway, Mikkel Diskerud and Rosenborg fell just short of the Tippeligaen title despite a 3-0 closing day win at Lillestrøm. The Troll Kids finished one point behind Strømsgodset, who busted open a scoreless game with four second half goals on Sunday to claim their first league crown in 43 years.
Meanwhile, six Steve Clark saves were not enough to keep Hønefoss from being relegated by a 3-2 defeat at Odds BK. In a game that saw the cellar-dwellers twice take the lead, the American was also charged with an own-goal on the home side's first equalizer.
Finally, in Austria's honor division, Terrence Boyd pitched in a decent 74 minute shift as Rapid Vienna clawed back late for a 2-2 draw at SV Grödig. The point gained tentatively lifted the Green-Whites into second place, while also extending their unbeaten run across all competitions to eight games.
