Uruguay are almost assured of their place in next year’s World Cup finals in Brazil after battering Jordan 5-0 in their intercontinental playoff first leg on Wednesday.
The South American giants, sixth in the FIFA rankings, overcame a few tense minutes at the start of the game at the packed Amman International Stadium to seal an emphatic victory against the 70th ranked Jordanians who failed to live up to the hype and expectation generated in their own country.
Benfica defender Maxi Pereira put the South American side ahead in the 22nd minute with a simple tap-in after an Edinson Cavani header was parried by Jordanian goalkeeper Abdulla al-Zubi.
Photo: Reuters
The two-time world champions consolidated their lead through Espanyol striker Christian Stuani who sneaked the ball under al-Zubi after a brilliant dummy by Cavani in the 42nd minute.
The Paris Saint-Germain star ducked under a throw-in to allow the ball to reach Nicolas Lodeiro and the Botafogo midfielder clipped the ball to Stuani who beat al-Zubi with an easy shot.
“I expected that the team would face difficulties, and win, but not with that number of goals,” Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez said after the game. “We have become closer to the World Cup, and all the stars of the team will play next Wednesday’s match.”
Tabarez praised the Jordanians saying they were “tough and played well.”
Jordan’s Egyptian coach Hossam Hassan said his team carried the hopes of the entire Arab world, but the Uruguayans proved too good.
“I bear full responsibility. I wanted to make Jordanian fans happy, but things did not work as we wished,” Hassan said.
The Jordanians had one clear chance, but Ibrahim al-Zawareh inexplicably fired wide from close range after Shareef Adnan had done all the hard work on the right early in the second half.
Thereafter it was Uruguay all the way, Lodeiro scored the third goal in the 69th minute after poor defending by the Jordanians allowed Cavani to get behind the back four.
Cristian Rodriguez got on the scoresheet in the 76th minute with a half-volley from close range and Cavani, easily the star of the match, finished off the game with a brilliant free-kick from outside the penalty area in added time.
A seven-year-old horse had to be euthanized on Friday after breaking its back on the final fence of a Grand National steeplechase race that it won despite sustaining the serious injury. It follows the death of four horses at the Cheltenham Festival last month — including one after the prestigious Gold Cup. Gold Dancer was competing in the Mildmay Novices’ Chase during Ladies Day at Aintree’s Grand National Festival. The horse managed to cross the finish line approximately four lengths ahead of runner-up Regent’s Stroll. “The winner of our second race of the day, Gold Dancer, was pulled up after
Taiwanese gymnast Tang Chia-hung on Sunday topped the men’s horizontal bar event at the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) World Cup in Osijek, Croatia, scoring 15.233 to take his third title this season. Tang delivered an outstanding performance in the final, earning a difficulty score of 6.500 and an execution score of 8.633 with a 0.1 stick bonus. His closest competitor was Milad Karimi of Kazakhstan, who finished second with 14.933 points. It was Tang’s third gold medal in the FIG World Cup series this year, following his horizontal bar wins in Azerbaijan on March 8, and in Turkey on March
The Daredevils yesterday took eight catches in the final as they eked out a victory in the Taiwan Cricket Triangular Tournament against PCCT at Yingfeng Cricket Ground in Taipei’s Songshan District. PCCT’s batting lineup collapsed after they asked the Daredevils to bowl in the T20 decider of the weekend tournament that also involved the Formosa Cricket Club. PCCT were bundled out for 76 in 16.2 overs against a disciplined Daredevils attack. Ninad Malwade was the top scorer in the innings with 21, but he was among those who offered chances to the fielders. Shane Ferreira and Jason Cameron took three wickets each, with
This year’s Taiwan Athletics Open, which offers Taiwanese athletes an opportunity to compete against their international peers, would be held under a new name after its organizers had earlier announced the event’s cancelation. In a statement issued yesterday, the Chinese Taipei Athletics Association said the competition would still take place on June 6-7 at Banciao Stadium, but under the name “New Taipei City Athletics Open 2026.” The event was given a new name to emphasize its local identity and conform with the international practice of naming World Athletics Tour events after cities, the association said. It said it would soon
RSS