TOULOUSE (France): Veteran Bulgarian Dimitar Berbatov scored a brace as AS Monaco warmed up for next week’s decisive Champions League match against Zenit St. Petersburg a 2-0 win away to Toulouse in Ligue 1 on Friday.

The 33-year-old striker put Monaco in front in the 45th minute with a classy finish from a tight angle then extended his team’s lead from the penalty spot in the 77th with his fifth goal this season.

The win provisionally lifted the principality side to seventh with 26 points from 17 games, nine points adrift of leaders Olympique de Marseille who play on Sunday. Toulouse are 11th on 20 points.

Monaco will welcome the confidence boost four days before they host Zenit in their Champions League group finale, needing to avoid defeat to clinch a last 16 spot.

“I think we deserved to win, we were the better team,” said Berbatov. “It is an important win, now we have to prepare for another important game. This gave us more self-belief that we can progress in the Champions League.”

Published in Dawn December 7th , 2014