Venezuela took their first points off Argentina at the 19th attempt with a shock 1-0 win as the second round of South American qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup left Uruguay top of the standings on Tuesday.
Uruguay, with Diego Forlan scoring a record 32nd goal for his country, are the only team with four points after a 1-1 draw in Paraguay, while Chile, the team Argentina crushed 4-1 on Friday, gave beleaguered coach Claudio Borghi a boost with a tough 4-2 home victory over Peru.
Colombia, who had a bye on Friday, secured an invaluable 2-1 victory away over Bolivia in the rarefied air of their La Paz stronghold nearly 4,000m up in the Andes with substitute striker Radamel Falcao’s last-ditch winner.
Photo: EPA
Argentina and Venezuela have three points each, as do Colombia, Chile, Peru and Ecuador, who had a bye. Brazil as hosts are exempt from qualifying.
Defender Fernando Amorebieta scored the only goal in Puerto La Cruz for a Venezuelan side, fourth at the Copa America in July, who appear good enough to end their country’s wait for a place at the finals for the first time.
Argentina’s second choice goalkeeper, Mariano Andujar, standing in for the injured Sergio Romero, did all he could to keep the score down.
Photo: AFP
Forlan, taking a pass from Luis Suarez, tapped in at the intimidating Defensores del Chaco to ensure Copa America holders Uruguay took a point in a 1-1 draw away to Paraguay, notching a national record 32nd goal.
Left back Richard Ortiz equalized on his Paraguay debut, stabbing home a stoppage time goal at a corner.
Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez said: “This [qualifying] championship is even, no team can consider themselves superior.”
Photo: EPA
Borghi, heavily criticized after the Chileans’ defeat in their opening qualifier in Buenos Aires, did not turn up at the post-match news conference at the Monumental in Santiago.
His assistant Jaime Vera said: “He isn’t feeling well” and then added about the result, “it’s pure oxygen for what we are doing.”
Chile got off to a flying start when Waldo Ponce scored in the opening minute and they were 3-0 ahead two minutes after halftime following goals by Eduardo Vargas in the 17th and Gary Medel half an hour later.
Peru hit back with two goals in 10 minutes before the hour was up from striker Claudio Pizarro and winger Jefferson Farfan before striker Humberto Suazo gave Chile a two-goal cushion with a 63rd-minute penalty after Jorge Valdivia was brought down.
Valdivia said he thought Peru, who took a surprise third place at the Copa America, were overconfident after their 2-0 home win over Paraguay on Friday earned them exuberant praise from the home media.
“There was a lot of talk, especially by the Peruvian press, of the ‘fantastic quartet,’” Valdivia said, referring to Juan Vargas, Farfan, Pizarro and Paolo Guerrero, who scored Peru’s goals against Paraguay. “But we managed to neutralize them and take advantage of our speed on the flanks. I think that was the difference in the match.”
Peru’s Uruguayan coach Sergio Markarian said: “A goal so early complicates everything because it boosts your rivals.”
Jesper Boqvist on Tuesday scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third period as the Florida Panthers, after raising their second straight NHL Stanley Cup banner, opened the defense of the title by beating the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2. Mackie Samoskevich — getting his second assist, the fifth two-point game of his career — chipped the puck toward the goal and Boqvist knocked it out of the air for the lead with 10 minutes, 20 seconds left. A.J. Greer and Carter Verhaeghe also had goals for Florida, who got 17 saves from Sergei Bobrovsky. Frank Nazar had a goal and an assist and Teuvo
Mexico’s teenage playmaker Gilberto Mora has lit up the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile as he basks in the limelight afforded by the absences of Barcelona and Real Madrid stars Lamine Yamal and Franco Mastantuono. “I don’t know if I’m the biggest star, and I’m not really interested in that. I think you can always give more,” 16-year-old Mora said before Mexico’s 4-1 win against host nation Chile in the round-of-16 on Tuesday, in which he provided the assist for the opening goal. Next on Mora’s schedule is a quarter-final clash against Argentina this morning Taiwan time, but after
World No. 3 Alexander Zverev on Monday said that he was playing “terrible tennis” after he was knocked out of the Shanghai Masters by France’s Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. His exit leaves Novak Djokovic as the tournament’s top-ranked player, increasing the 38-year-old Serb’s chances of winning a record-extending fifth title in the Chinese financial hub. In stifling conditions, world No. 54 Rinderknech came back from a set down to stun an increasingly rattled Zverev into submission. It is the second time the Frenchman has beaten him, after bundling him out of Wimbledon earlier this year. A despondent Zverev told reporters the match had
‘SOMETHING SPECIAL’: Nathan Lukes hit a two-run single and Addison Barger had three of Toronto’s 12 hits as the Blue Jays bounced back After taking down the storied New York Yankees in their own ballpark in their American League Division Series on Wednesday, Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider was ready to revel in the triumph. “Start spreading the news,” Schneider said while popping a bottle of bubbly to set off the Blue Jays’ jubilant celebration inside their Yankee Stadium clubhouse. With the party under way, the familiar lyrics from Frank Sinatra’s version of New York, New York — the Yankees’ long-time victory anthem — sounded in the background as roaring Toronto players sprayed each other with booze in the Bronx. This time, it was their
RSS