Snak

Tabarez calls for Uruguay focus

Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez was surprisingly underwhelmed by his side´s performance in the 5-0 win over Jordan on Wednesday.

The visitors dominated the game in Amman and were convincing winners of the FIFA World Cup intercontinental play-off first leg, although their boss was less than impressed.

Maxi Pereira and Christian Stuani gave the South Americans a 2-0 lead going into the break, with Nicolas Lodeiro, Cristian Rodriguez and Edinson Cavani completing the rout in the second half.

With the second-leg in Montevideo on Tuesday, Uruguay are favourites to qualify for Brazil 2014, but Tabarez called for focus from his side.

"We have not played very well, but we always have to think that the opponent against us will give their best," he said. "Although the potential of Jordan is not the same as the other teams we face in the qualifiers.

"This is a reality, but this team throughout the Asian Round had not lost a home game. We wanted to inhibit them and did it very well, since they do not have the strength we have with our individuality."

Uruguay will go into the second leg full of confidence given they have not lost a competitive match at home since October 2009

Verón, descartado en Estudiantes

LA PLATA -- Juan Sebastián Verón no será arriesgado y no estará presente el próximo sábado ante Godoy Cruz en Mendoza y su lugar será ocupado por Israel Damonte, mientras que Guido Carrillo recuperará la titularidad en lugar del lesionado Franco Jara, que se perderá por su lesión muscular el resto de la temporada.

Franco Jara se suma a la lista que integran Leonardo Jara y Matías Aguirregaray, quienes no podrán jugar por diversas lesiones en las cuatro fechas finales del Torneo Inicial.

El plantel trabajó en la mañana del miércoles en el plano táctico y el entrenador Pellegrino puso en cancha las variantes de Damonte y Carrillo por Verón y Franco Jara.

Con estos dos cambios, en Mendoza formaría con Gerónimo Rulli; Mauricio Rosales, Santiago Vergini, Leandro Desábato y Jonatan Silva; Carlos Auzqui, Gastón Gil Romero, Israel Damonte y Patricio Rodríguez; Román Martínez y Guido Carrillo.

Carrillo hasta el momento es el goleador del equipo con cuatro tantos y jugó como titular 11 de los 15 partidos del Inicial, a lo que hay sumarle uno más por Copa Argentina, aunque tuvo minutos en todos los cotejos disputados por el equipo.

Damonte, por su parte, fue titular en siete de los 15 partidos que lleva el campeonato.

Tras el entrenamiento del jueves, una vez más a puertas cerradas, el técnico dará su habitual conferencia de prensa y dará precisiones sobre esta formación.

El plantel elegido viajará el viernes a Mendoza y luego recibirá el lunes 25 a Colón, fecha en la cuál podrá reaparecer Gastón Fernández, que el sábado 23 cumplirá con la suspensión impuesta por el TAS (Tribunal Arbitral del Deporte) de cuatro meses.

Daniel Montenegro: "Merecíamos un partido así"

BUENOS AIRES -- El enlace y emblema de Independiente Daniel Montenegro se mostró satisfecho por la goleada 3-0 de su equipo ante Ferro Carril Oeste y destacó que se merecían un "partido así".

"Nos vamos contentos. Creo que ya merecíamos un partido así, por lo que veníamos haciendo. Nos da confianza jugar de la manera que lo hicimos y más por los resultados que se están dando", resaltó el capitán del Rojo.

El autor de los dos primeros goles de Independiente en el partido de la fecha 17 de la Primera B Nacional remarcó además que su equipo debía "tener paciencia" para sacar ventaja.

"Ellos vinieron a hacer su trabajo. Se encontraron con un hombre menos, se replegaron bien y nosotros teníamos que tratar de jugar, de tener paciencia. Hacer goles nos da confianza y ganas de seguir creciendo", redondeó el Rolfi.

Por su parte, el defensor Gabriel Vallés, autor del tercer tanto para el conjunto de Avellaneda destacó que Independiente "está agarrando confianza en el juego" y que deben seguir por el mismo camino.

El DT de Independiente, Omar De Felippe, afirmó que su equipo, que superó 3-0 a Ferro, por la 17ª fecha del torneo Nacional B, superó una "cuenta pendiente" al ganar por "más de un gol" de diferencia.

"Esta era una cuenta pendiente del equipo: cerrar los partidos y ganar por más de un gol de diferencia. Fue un buen partido de Independiente, pero siempre esperamos que el mejor sea el próximo", señaló De Felippe en conferencia de prensa.

De Felippe, ex DT de Quilmes y Olimpo de Bahía Blanca, indicó que sus dirigidos cambiaron "el chip" y que empezaron a convencer a los hinchas: "Ahora la gente empieza a sentirse identificada con el equipo", apuntó.

Con este triunfo, Independiente suma 28 unidades, se ubica cuarto, y quedó a uno de Crucero del Norte de Misiones, que está tercero, con 29, y ocupa la última plaza para el ascenso a la máxima categoría del fútbol argentino.

En tanto, el entrenador destacó el tercer gol, del defensor Gabriel Vallés: "Hizo un golazo desde fuera del área y bien por él porque se lo merecía; labura un montón", precisó.

A pesar de la goleada, De Felippe señaló que no vio "tranquilo" el encuentro porque su equipo perdió "muchas pelotas" en el mediocampo. Por último, el entrenador de Independiente señaló que el triunfo no desviará al plantel del "objetivo final", que es alcanzar los puestos de ascenso, y que "el secreto" del mismo estará en el entrenamiento.

Ramón Díaz cambió medio equipo

BUENOS AIRES --Ramón Díaz empieza a delinear el equipo para enfrentar a Olimpo de Bahía Blanca, el próximo domingo, 18.15 en el Monumental, por la 16° fecha del Torneo Inicial. El técnico de River realizó una práctica de futbol en el predio de Ezeiza y, por lo visto, planea realizar seis cambios con respecto al empate ante Vélez.

Dos de esos cambios son obligados, ya que Eder Álvarez Balanta y Teófilo Gutiérrez están afectados a la Selección Colombia en Bruselas. Por el zaguero central, ingresó Germán Pezzella, debido a que Jonathan Bottinelli sigue con molestias, mientras que por el delantero ingresó Giovanni Simeone.

A su vez, hubo cambio de esquema táctico. Teniendo en cuenta que Rodrigo Mora, con una fatiga muscular, sólo hizo ejercicios en el gimnasio por segundo día consecutivo, Ramón ensayó con un 4-3-2-1, con Jonathan Fabbro y Manuel Lanzini en la doble conducción ofensiva detrás de Simeone. Ariel Rojas jugó para los suplentes.

Por otro lado, se destacaron los regresos de Cristian Ledesma y Leonel Vangioni, en reemplazo de Leonardo Ponzio y Ramiro Funes Mori. En el arco se ubicó Leandro Chichizola, ya que Marcelo Barovero practicó de forma diferenciada al estar recuperándose de la molestia en el aductor derecho. De todas formas, el ex Vélez hará fútbol el jueves y estará bajo los tres palos ante el conjunto bahiense.

En consecuencia los titulares en la práctica fueron: Chichizola; Mercado, Pezzella, Maidana, Vangioni; Carbonero, Ledesma, Kranevitter; Lanzini, Fabbro; Simeone. Para los suplentes jugaron: Rodriguez; Federico Vega, Funes Mori, Daniel Vega, Nicolás Gómez; Solari, Aguirre, Ponzio, Rojas; Menseguéz y Andrada. Los titulares ganaron 2 a 1, con goles de Carbonero y Lanzini, mientras que Menseguéz descontó para los suplentes.

Por su parte, Osmar Ferreyra no estuvo en el entrenamiento a causa de un problema personal.

Ante Olimpo, River buscará cortar una sequía de ocho encuentros sin conocer la victoria, si se cuentan también los dos encuentros ante Lanús por Copa Sudamericana. Por el torneo local, perdió tres y empató los otros tres. La última victoria fue, casualmente, ante el conjunto Granate, por la 9° fecha del Torneo Inicial.

Gimnasia, listo para recibir a Argentinos

BUENOS AIRES -- En una semana bastante particular, en la cual se llegó a poner en duda la continuidad de Pedro Troglio, Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata tiene todo definido para el partido del próximo viernes frente a Argentinos Juniors, en la apertura de la fecha 16 del Torneo Inicial.

Finalmente, serán dos las modificaciones con respecto a los once que cayeron ante All Boys, el pasado sábado. Ingresarán Omar Pouso y Matías Garcia, en lugar de Dardo Miloc e Ignacio Fernández. Éste último, fue operado con éxito por una tendinopatía en una sus rodillas y estará entre tres y cuatro meses sin actividad futbolística.

En definitiva, los once que jugarían ante Argentinos son: Fernando Monetti; Facundo Oreja, Osvaldo Barsottini, Juan Carlos Blengio y Lucas Licht; Gastón Díaz, Omar Pouso, Franco Mussis y Matías García; Maximiliano Meza y Facundo Pereyra.

Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata tiene 20 puntos en el Torneo Inicial, producto de una campaña muy irregular con cinco triunfos, cinco empates y cinco derrotas. Sin embargo, el equipo de Pedro Troglio no ganó en sus últimos cinco partidos, desde la victoria ante Vélez en la fecha 10.

Medina renovó hasta 2015 con R. Central

BUENOS AIRES -- Mientras el equipo de Miguel Ángel Russo acumula ocho partidos sin derrotas, la dirigencia de Rosario Central se aseguró en las últimas horas la continuidad de Antonio Medina, por lo menos, hasta junio de 2016.

El delantero chaqueño, titular en los últimos siete partidos del conjunto rosarino, llegó al club allá por mediados de 2010 y participó en las tres temporadas del Nacional B. Anteriormente, Medina estuvo en Boca Unidos, Textil Mandiyu y Chaco for Ever.

Otro que extendió su vínculo con Rosario Central, durante esta semana, es el juvenil Pablo Becker. El nacido en 1993, ya lleva jugados 25 partidos en primera división y es una pieza de recambio el mediocampo de Russo.

En cuanto a lo futbolístico, es un hecho que, ante Vélez, regresarán a la titularidad Antonio Medina y Franco Peppino, tras cumplir sus respectivas sanciones. Quienes dejarían su lugar son Walter Acuña y Lisandro Magallán. Además, por lesión, estará ausente Rafael Delgado y será reemplazado por Lucas Lazo, corriéndose Paulo Ferrari al sector izquierdo.

En definitiva, los once para jugar ante Vélez serían: Mauricio Caranta; Lucas Lazo, Alejandro Donatti, Franco Peppino, Paulo Ferrari; Hernán Encina, Nery Domínguez, Diego Lagos; Antonio Medina, Carlos Luna, Federico Carrizo.

Rosario Central lleva ocho partidos invicto, ya que no pierde desde la fecha 7 ante Tigre. Acumula 22 puntos en el Torneo Inicial y, momentáneamente, se encuentra lejos de los puestos de descenso.

Uruguay´s band of brothers closes in on the World Cup

When he took the field for the playoff against Jordan, goalkeeper Martin Silva became the 28th player Uruguay have used in their World Cup qualification campaign. All of the other South American teams used more.

Uruguay coach Oscar Washington Tabarez is fiercely loyal to his group of players, many of whom have been together since the 2007 Copa America. But sticking with the same players does not necessarily mean sticking with the same strategy. Uruguay can switch formations -- from a back three to a back four, for example -- and change approaches, sometimes with the same starting lineup.

The team have a range of tactical approaches open to them. One of the key tasks of Tabarez is to select the right game plan. The 5-0 scoreline in his side´s favour showed that he got things spot-on in the first leg away to Jordan in World Cup playoffs.

Uruguay´s initial lineup made their intention plain -- decide the contest in the first leg. Tabarez wanted away goals, and set up his side to get them. Egidio Arevalo Rios was the only defensive specialist in his four-man midfield. The other three -- Christian Stuani, Nicolas Lodeiro and Cristian Rodriguez -- all got on the score sheet.

The inclusion of Stuani was hugely significant, and was thoroughly justified by his role in the most important goals of the game, the first two. Stuani is one of the very few players to have forced his way into what otherwise has been something of a closed group. Originally a striker, he has been converted into a right-side midfielder in his time with Espanyol, and he curled in a wonderful cross from the flank to set up the opening goal. But the old goal scorer´s instinct is still there; he came off the bench to score an important goal at home against Colombia in September, and now he latched on to Lodeiro´s clever diagonal pass to side home the second against Jordan, and effectively decide the contest.

Next week´s second leg will be more like a victory celebration in Montevideo´s Centenario stadium. Come the serious stuff, though, Tabarez is unlikely to field such an adventurous team. He will survey the situation and come up with something more cautious.

Uruguay´s coach loves to repeat a statistic from his side´s surprise run to the semifinals of the previous World Cup. In every game, the opposition had more possession. But Uruguay had more shots. It makes sense. Tabarez is lucky enough to be able to call on a wonderful collection of strikers -- and if the star of Diego Forlan has waned since South Africa 2010, Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani are moving in the opposite direction. Much of the rest of the team is little more than workmanlike -- and now, after being together for so long, parts of the team are beginning to creak.

Uruguay had a dreadful time in the 2012-13 season; in a run of six games, they drew 2 and lost 4, conceding 15 goals in the process. Tabarez needed to have a rethink, and the verdict was that his team would go back to basics. Uruguay would accept their limitations, recognise that in many cases the opposition was better able to maneuver the ball around midfield. They would defend deep, protecting some of the aging limbs on the back line, and creating plenty of space to slip Luis Suarez on the counterattack.

It is the method that saved their qualification campaign; Uruguay pulled it out of the fire with away wins against Venezuela and Peru, direct rivals for the playoff spot, as they closed the campaign with four victories in the past five games -- and this latest win has all but ensured their place in Brazil.

It was entirely fitting that the fifth goal was scored by Cavani, with a glorious free kick into the far top corner. The Paris Saint-Germain striker had a highly effective game; the first goal came when his header from Stuani´s cross was pushed out for Maxi Pereira´s follow-up. He gave a clever dummy to help set up the second.

The third was the result of his run to the bye-line and pull back for Lodeiro. Rodriguez was free at the far post to volley home the fourth because Cavani´s run drew the defence to the near post. And, as ever, he interpreted the position of striker as a box-to-box role, dropping back to help out the defence with the spirit of sacrifice that has led Tabarez to describe him as "the perfect son-in-law."

He deserved his moment of glory with the fifth goal, and his teammates will need to keep showing those same unselfish virtues if Uruguay are to make the short journey to the World Cup with real hopes of making an impression.

Herrera´s rescue mission should have started sooner

So all along, beating New Zealand proved to be this easy for Mexico. All that was needed was to take out the non-performing, excuse-making surly coach Jose Manuel "Chepo" de la Torre and put in the competent, charismatic Miguel "Piojo" Herrera and voila, a dynamic and united El Tri squad emerged, one capable of putting up five goals in a match with ease. Brazil 2014 is now only a mariachi dance and a few choruses of "Cielito Lindo" away.

Wednesday´s 5-1 victory at Azteca wasn´t that simple, of course. The lessons of 2013 can´t really be encapsulated by the playoff games against the Kiwis. To defeat a team like New Zealand, a country that doesn´t even have a full professional league, shouldn´t be cause for such frenzied celebrations such as the ones that took place in Azteca Stadium.

Of course, fans can´t be blamed for being happy their beloved team can go to the World Cup. But there is plenty of blame to go around for putting Mexico in danger in the first place. The country´s soccer federation refused to take action early on in qualifying when De la Torre wasn´t getting results.

The coaches, and even players themselves, didn´t seem to take their CONCACAF rivals seriously, focusing instead on the Confederations Cup (which turned out to be a dismal tournament for El Tri as well) even as Mexico´s play deteriorated.

The danger signals were ignored as so many waited for Mexico to improve and play better simply because it was expected. Finally, the Sept. 6 home loss to Honduras was the wake-up call, resulting in De la Torre´s sacking.

Yet so little thought was given to really changing anything in the squad that no serious coaching search was done, the reins simply being handed over to the second-in-command during De la Torre´s poor run. When things didn´t improve under Luis Fernando Tena, the federation again made an easy and convenient choice -- Jose Manuel Vucetich, the recently fired Monterrey coach.

Then came Mexico´s darkest hour -- the dying minutes against Costa Rica when the team appeared completely eliminated from the World Cup as Panama neared gaining the playoff spot against New Zealand. Only the stoppage-time goal by the the United States´ Graham Zusi put Mexico back into position to do what it did to New Zealand.

Then, and only then, was the federation scared into real action. Vucetich was fired, and Herrera -- Liga MX´s top coach, the man who really wanted the job all along -- was given a temporary contract and a mandate to make the changes he wished.

The plucky coach decided not the mess with a winning combination. He stuck with the players he knew best, those from his league team (Club America) and their formation, the 3-5-2.

Seven players from Las Aguilas started Wednesday. A Club America player was involved in every goal. Paul Aguilar scored the first, pouncing on a rebound. Raul Jimenez got the second on a header. Miguel Layun put up a trademark pass to Santos Laguna’s Oribe Peralta for the third, and the exact same combination repeated for the fourth. Juan Carlos Medina took the corner that led to the final goal by Mexico -- a header by Leon´s Rafael Marquez. And finally, it was goalkeeper Moises Munoz who had the game´s only slight letdown, when New Zealand´s Chris James scored a consolation goal for the Kiwis.

Other than that, it was all fun and games for Mexico. However, the truth remains, even as fans are now booking their tickets to Brazil, that this qualification process doesn´t bode well for a good showing by Mexico at World Cup.

It´s also possible Herrera may not even be kept on as coach, or, even if he is, he may be forced by the wealthy owners of Club America to stay on to finish their Liguilla run before he can turn his full attention to the national team. It´s a shoddy way to treat the person who had the guts to leave the famous European players off the roster, not to mention the nerve to guarantee a victory.

Something has finally gone right for El Tri. While that´s great, it´s important to stay on that track. A big part of that is to remember how things went wrong in the first place and to avoid that in the future.

Marquez primed for World Cup history

Mexico´s 5-1 victory over New Zealand in Estadio Azteca on Wednesday brought El Tri´s Rafa Marquez one step closer to becoming the first player in history to captain his country at four different World Cups.

Twenty-two players in total have featured in four separate editions of the international tournament, but none has captained his team in all of them, according to official game statistics on FIFA´s website.

If Mexico secures the Brazil 2014 spot next week and Marquez retains the armband -- both of which are probable -- it will complete an impressive turnaround in a career that had gone off the rails after South Africa 2010 and an international career many had assigned to the scrap heap.

A move to MLS outfit New York Red Bulls from Barcelona in the summer of 2010 proved an unqualified disaster for both him and the club, with Marquez making only 44 appearances in more than two years.

Marquez´s time in MLS was plagued by injuries, as well as indiscipline and a couple of high-profile tantrums, most famously when he threw the ball at U.S. international Landon Donovan in frustration after Red Bulls´ 1-0 home loss to Los Angeles Galaxy in October 2011, causing a raucous between the two sides.

Marquez´s stock with the national team dropped steeply -- he played just two games for El Tri between October 2011 and October 2013.

He pined for a move back to Mexico and, after a deal with cash-strapped Atlas didn´t come off, Marquez joined the recently promoted Club Leon in December 2012, fueled by the allure of playing in the Copa Libertadores.

Los Panzas Verdes Leon crashed out of the continental competition in the preliminary round and struggled in the league in the Clausura 2013, but Marquez slowly found some rhythm.

It was in the current Apertura that Marquez -- with a full, injury-free preseason behind him and having been made Leon´s captain -- rediscovered the kind of form that helped him become CONCACAF´s most successful export to Europe in terms of major trophies (four La Liga titles, two Champions League victories).

And with Mexico struggling to find any on-field leadership as World Cup qualifying slowly slipped from their grasp, Victor Manuel Vucetich once again called on Marquez´s presence ahead of the key qualifiers against Panama and Costa Rica last month.

When Miguel Herrera subsequently took over, Marquez was one of only a few to survive the cull of players, and the America coach has been effusive in his praise of the 34-year-old ever since.

"Marquez is a natural leader," said Herrera ahead of the New Zealand game. "He´s a guy that talks on the field, leads and shouts at the right time."

On Wednesday night, Marquez gave a reminder of exactly what he brings to the table, albeit against a poor All Whites side.

It was an exquisite, quarterback-esque pass that put Miguel Layun free to square for Oribe Peralta for El Tri´s third just after halftime, while Marquez himself headed in Mexico´s fifth goal of the afternoon.

Playing at the heart of the three center backs, Marquez moved up into midfield when required and organized the players around him with aplomb, as he used to at Atlas, Monaco and Barcelona.

More than 11 years have passed since the 2002 World Cup, but Marquez still shows class on the ball and reading of the game off it to be a major player for Mexico.

It was in Japan and South Korea that Marquez burst onto the international scene aged 23, after Javier Aguirre surprisingly made him captain at his first World Cup.

Ricardo La Volpe followed suit in 2006, while in 2010 Aguirre handed Gerardo Torrado, then Marquez, then Cuauhtemoc Blanco the captain´s duties in the first three group games before signaling who his real leader was by picking Marquez for the Round of 16 game against Argentina.

The Kaiser de Michoacan may not have been Mexico´s most popular player over the years, but he´s within touching distance of history on the world stage, and all the factors are aligning for him to lead El Tri into Brazil 2014.

Herrera: We owe the fans

Mexico´s Miguel Herrera insists his team paid back a debt to their fans in their World Cup intercontinental play-off first leg on Wednesday.

The new head coach of Mexico took charge of his first match in the play-off against New Zealand and tasted immediate success as his team thrashed the visitors at the Estadio Azteca 5-1.

After Mexico stuttered in CONCACAF´s final World Cup qualifying group to only finish fourth and, therefore, face a two-legged play-off for a spot at Brazil 2014, Herrera claimed his team had started to rebuild a positive relationship with their fans after the big win over New Zealand.

"The truth is that the team was in debt with the fans and we repaid it to some extent," Herrera said.

"(The debt) is not settled yet. We hope to give them more satisfaction by coming back from New Zealand and delivering to them the ticket to the World Cup in Brazil."

Mexico led 2-0 at half-time thanks to goals from Paul Aguilar and Raul Jimenez after New Zealand had defended stoutly for 30 minutes.

The second half saw Mexico destroy the visitors as Oribe Peralta notched a brace and captain Rafael Marquez added a fifth for the hosts, before Chris James struck for New Zealand in the 85th minute.

Despite the big win, Herrera maintained his job was only half finished before guaranteeing Mexico will win in Wellington in a week.

"I am coach for two games and that´s the reality. I have won nothing. I won a game," Herrera said.

"We´re going to win the second (leg), I´m sure of it, and they (the Mexican federation) will decide if I go to the World Cup with Mexico. They´ll make that determination."