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Soccer Capsules: Sabah, Mexico beat Haiti 4-0
Comments 0 | Recommend 0ARLINGTON — Even with Javier Aguirre sitting in the stands, Mexico didn't have any problems beating Haiti.
Now Mexico hopes to have its embattled coach back on the bench for a run at another Gold Cup crown.
Miguel Sabah scored two goals and Mexico advanced to the CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinals without the suspended Aguirre, defeating Haiti 4-0 Sunday night.
Aguirre was serving the second of a three-game suspension for his altercation with Panama's Ricardo Phillips during group play on July 9.
"The players do need their coach on the bench, in the locker room," Aguirre said. "It's not ideal and I hope it doesn't happen again."
Aguirre will also miss Mexico's semifinal Thursday against Costa Rica, which beat Guadeloupe 5-1 in another quarterfinal Sunday at the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium.
The two games marked the first sporting events played in the $1.15 billion facility that opened in June.
The United States, two-time defending champs, take on Honduras in the other semifinal Thursday. Both matches will be played in Chicago.
Giovani Dos Santos had a goal and two assists for Mexico (3-0-1), which has won the Gold Cup four times since its inception in 1991.
"We haven't accomplished anything yet," Aguirre said. "Our goal is to win the Gold Cup."
Mario Carrillo filled in on the sideline as Aguirre watched from the crowd.
With about 10 minutes left against Panama, Aguirre raised his leg and seemed to kick Phillips as he dribbled near the sideline.
After a linesman stopped play, Phillips shoved Aguirre. Players converged in the area and several got into shoving matches.
CONCACAF general secretary Chuck Blazer called the incident an "aberration," but suspended Aguirre for three games and fined the Mexican Football Federation $25,000.
The earliest he can return would be for the Gold Cup final July 26.
"The game we played is what we worked on all week with Aguirre," Sabah said. "Sure there is a difference. Aguirre has more character. Carrillo is a more calmer force on the bench."
Mexico scored after Haiti defender Frantz Bertin was called for a hand ball in the goalie's box off Sabah's shot.
Haiti goalkeeper Jean Dominique Zephirin stopped Israel Castro's penalty kick. Sabah, however, swooped in and scored off the rebound in the 23rd minute.
Dos Santos made it 2-0 in the 42nd minute when he juked Haiti's Mones Cherry and fired it in the air past a diving Zephirin.
Haiti (1-2-1) qualified only after Cuba withdrew before the start of the Gold Cup. It won a draw over Trinidad & Tobago for the final team spot.
Zephirin made several quality saves in the opening minutes to keep Haiti close.
He kicked away a shot by Alberto Medina in the 13th minute, then made a diving stop on Carlos Esquivel's ball three minutes later to keep it scoreless.
Mexico, which outshot Haiti 13-3 in the first half, pulled away before intermission and scored twice again in the second half.
Sabah, who has a team-leading four goals in the Gold Cup, scored on a header off a corner kick in the 62nd minute.
Sabah was a controversial choice for the Mexican national team. He has never played with a European team and was mainly a reserve for Chivas Guadalajara, a high-profile club team in Mexico.
"My call-up came with a lot of criticism," Sabah said. "You only have one opportunity."
Dos Santos picked up his second assist, feeding Pablo Barrera in the 83rd minute as the raucous Mexican faithful dropped confetti from the upper deck one last time.
There was an announced crowd of 82,252, including hundreds waving Mexican flags when their team took the field for warmups.
There were also thousands of spectators standing on the concourses behind the first three levels of seats.
Cowboys Stadium, which has hosted concerts by George Strait and the Jonas Brothers, was a little more than half full at the start of the Guadeloupe-Costa Rica match. The stadium began to fill up with fans of Mexico toward the end of the opener.
By the time Mexico and Haiti took the field, the only empty seats were in the suites.
"These players are used to playing with 500 to 2,000 people," Haiti coach Jairo Rios said. "And having 80,000 Mexico fans, there were players whose legs were shaking. That was the fear, the fear of the atmosphere of the stadium."
NOTES: According to CONCACAF, this was a record attendance for a soccer game in Texas. Barcelona and Club America played in front of 70,550 at Reliant Stadium in Houston.
Saborio leads Costa Rica past Guadeloupe 5-1
ARLINGTON — Alvaro Saborio scored two goals and Costa Rica advanced to the CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinals for the first time since 2003, beating Guadeloupe 5-1 Sunday in the first sporting event played at the new Cowboys Stadium.
Costa Rica (2-1-1) will play the winner of the Mexico-Haiti match in the semifinals Thursday in Chicago.
Armando Alonso had two assists to help Costa Rica jump out to a 2-0 advantage in the first 16 minutes.
In the early moments, Alonso passed the ball to midfielder Celso Borges near the top of the penalty box. Borges scored on a reverse bicycle kick, beating frozen goalkeeper Marius Fausta as the ball bounced once before landing just inside the left post.
"It was a great pass by Alonso," Borges said through an interpreter. "I didn't think twice about it. I just let the play guide me."
Saborio took a pass from Alonso and scored on a header from nine yards out to extend the lead to 2-0.
Andy Herron's goal on an assist from Saborio in the 47th minute made it 3-0.
Guadeloupe (2-2) cut its deficit to 3-1 when Larry Clavier passed to Alexander Alphonse, who split two defenders and scored on a header in the 64th minute.
Costa Rica outshot Guadeloupe 19-12.
"We started the game not concentrating," Guadeloupe coach Roger Salnot said through an interpreter. "We were out of sorts. Giving up two goals was a big blow. We couldn't change the course of the game."
Guadeloupe, a small cluster of islands under French rule in the Caribbean that was playing in its second Gold Cup, lost in the semifinals to Mexico in 2007.
Costa Rica, which has never won the Gold Cup, lost in the finals in 2002 to the United States and in the semifinals to Mexico in 2003. It was eliminated in the quarterfinals in both 2005 and 2007.
Saborio's second goal came in the 72nd minute on an assist from Borges. He took a long pass and beat Fausta to make it 4-1.
"I felt very confident," Saborio said through an interpreter. "I was able to follow the scheme."
Pablo Herrera added a goal in the 89th minute to cap the scoring.
The $1.15 billion Cowboys Stadium, which so far has played host to concerts by George Strait and the Jonas Brothers in June, was a little more than half full at the start. The stadium began to fill up with fans of Mexico toward the end of the match.
-- David Jimenez
MLS
Beckham confronts fan, gets booed in 1st home game
CARSON, Calif. — Boos rained down and fans sent negative messages with their homemade signs. Things sure got ugly when David Beckham came back to town.
Beckham downplayed the rough reception in his first home game with the Los Angeles Galaxy, a 2-2 tie with AC Milan in which his corner kick set up his team's second goal, although his halftime confrontation with a fan indicated otherwise Sunday night.
"I'm not disappointed. It doesn't affect me," he said. "You can't be liked by everyone."
Anti-Beckham sentiment ran high as the English star returned after missing half of the Major League Soccer season while on a five-month loan to the Italian club. He was the target of frequent booing and derisive banners held up in a corner of the stadium, where one of the team's fan groups sits.
The signs all had messages directed at Beckham. "Go home fraud" read one, with a red slash through his No. 23 jersey number. Another said, "23: Repent," while another read, "Hey Becks, Here Before You, Here After You, Here Despite You." Another read, "Is evil something u are...or something u do."
At halftime, Beckham walked toward the L.A. Riot Squad section and motioned to a fan to come closer. A man jumped down from the seats and was subdued by security before being taken away.
"One of the guys was saying things that wasn't very nice. It was stepping over the line," Beckham said. "I said, 'You need to calm down and come shake my hand,' and he jumped over."
The man was arrested by Cal State Dominguez Hills police for trespassing because he left the seating area, a Home Depot Center spokeswoman said.
"I know there was some turmoil in the corner but I didn't see it so I can't comment," Galaxy manager Bruce Arena said. "Obviously, there were some dissenters in the early going but I think he won over a lot of people by the end."
Beckham was the last player to take the field after halftime. He hugged several of his former AC Milan teammates and then turned toward the rowdy fan section and clapped his hands before making a gesture.
The banners weren't displayed as often in the second half, when a line of yellow-jacketed security personnel stood below the fans.
"A lot of people predicted this kind of reaction," Beckham said.
In the 65th minute, Beckham walked toward the fan section to take a corner kick. He sent a bending kick at Bryan Jordan, who headed the ball in from 7 feet to tie the game 2-2.
Beckham didn't join in the play. Instead, he turned and faced the fans who had been riding him all game and spread both arms wide as if to say, "What do you want?" He then gestured before walking away.
"Sometimes the supporters don't understand the situation," AC Milan coach Leonardo said.
Beckham left the game in the 75th minute and clapped his hands as he walked off to a mix of boos and cheers. He waved to fans offering a smattering of cheers in an opposite corner before sitting on the bench.
"The cheers in the end drowned out the boos, which was nice," he said.
It marked the end of a rough week for Beckham that began with him and team captain Landon Donovan accusing each other of being unprofessional. Donovan sparked the dispute with comments he made in a new book "The Beckham Experiment."
Arena mediated the clash during a sit down with both players, who later said they had patched things up.
"That's beyond my control," Donovan said when asked about the crowd's reaction to Beckham.
AC Milan dressed a half-strength lineup as it began a four-game preseason tour of the U.S. The seven-time European champions visited the Galaxy as part of the deal that allowed Beckham to remain on loan with Milan through the end of the Serie A season on May 31.
"You don't want to look silly and we definitely didn't look silly," he said about the Galaxy's play.
Beckham has said he again wants to return to Milan after the MLS season.
"We would be happy if he came back because he did really well. He's incredible," Leonardo said. "The precision he has is something very, very special. He never missed the ball. He controlled the ball. The way the Galaxy plays is very, very important. They see that every ball begins with him."
Thiago Silva put AC Milan ahead 1-0 in the 16th minute. The Galaxy tied the game in the 30th minute on a goal by Alan Gordon, assisted by Donovan and Beckham.
The Rossoneri took a 2-1 lead in the 61st minute when Filippo Inzaghi scored against Galaxy backup goalie Josh Saunders off assists by Mathieu Flamini and Ronaldinho.
"He was integral in both goals," Donovan said about Beckham. "There's not another player on a team in this league that can make those plays. It was an exciting game."
Beckham will play six more regular-season home games.
Earlier this year, Beckham said he wanted to remain with the Italian club rather than return to the Galaxy because he believed the level of play was much better in Europe and would help him achieve his goal of playing for England in the 2010 World Cup.
"If it's possible, I think it could be a very good thing for us," Leonardo said about getting Beckham back. "He knows everyone. Everyone loves him in our club."
-- Beth Harris
Mexico
Club America beats Inter Milan
STANFORD, California — Oscar Rojas scored the winning goal in a shootout as Mexico's Club America defeated Serie A powerhouse Inter Milan 5-4 on penalties to take the first match of the inaugural World Football Championship on Sunday.
After a scoreless first half, Club America took the lead in the 51st minute when midfielder Juan Carlos Silva slammed a left-footed shot past goalkeeper Vid Belec off a Pavel Pardo corner.
"I'm very happy because scoring a goal against such a big team is very exciting," Silva said.
Ivan Ramiro Cordoba equalized for Milan nine minutes later when he headed in a corner from Mario Baloelli, leaving the teams 1-1 at fulltime.
The six-city, round-robin tournament features four of the world's most biggest football teams — England's Chelsea, Italy's AC Milan and Inter Milan and Club America.
Neither team appeared to be treating the friendly tournament with any importance.
Inter Milan's Julio Cesar, one of the world's best goalkeepers, was not with the team Sunday and second choice keeper Francesco Toldo didn't take the field. That left the job to Belec, who turned 19 in June.
Two of Inter Milan's biggest stars, Argentinian defender Javier Zanetti and Swedish forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic were not in the starting lineup. Ibrahimovic entered the game early in the second half. Club America was missing star goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa.
"We're very happy with the way the game went," Inter Milan coach Jose Mourinho said. "We're very happy no one got injured."
Based on recent history, Inter Milan was the decided favorite Sunday. It won its fourth straight Serie A title in Italy last season. Club America, meanwhile, finished eighth in the Primera Division in Mexico and hasn't won a title since 2005. Also Jesus Ramirez became Club America's fifth new coach in a year when he was hired last February.
"I'm proud of the way the guys fought against a very tough team such as Inter," Ramirez said.
The tournament's next match is Tuesday in Pasadena, California where Chelsea will meet Inter Milan. Club America faces AC Milan Wednesday in Atlanta, then on Friday Chelsea and AC Milan play in Baltimore.
A tournament champion will be crowned based on total points. Teams receive three points for a win in regulation, two for a shootout win and one for a shootout loss.
At the end of regulation Sunday, players on both teams started exchanging jerseys, unaware that shootouts were part of the tournament.
United States
Abby Wambach gets 100th goal in U.S. win over Canada
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Abby Wambach scored her 100th international goal Sunday in the United States' 1-0 win over Canada in her hometown, where Mia Hamm reached the century mark in 1998.
The goal in an exhibition before a crowd of 8,433 at the home of the minor-league Rochester Raging Rhinos was a Wambach classic. Shannon Boxx picked up a loose ball in midfield from a goal kick in the 79th minute, Lauren Cheney fed a pass through the defense and Wambach darted through and slotted her shot inside the far post from nine yards.
It was Wambach's second international game since she broke her leg last July in the final pre-Olympic match. She joins eight other players, including Americans Mia Hamm (158), Kristine Lilly (129), Michelle Akers (105) and Tiffeny Milbrett (100), in the 100-goal club.
"After this year I've had, the heartbreak of not going to the Olympics, all of that pain is worth it," she said. "There's nothing more you can ask for than play in front of your home crowd and come through with a milestone like I did today.
"I couldn't dream of a more picture perfect ending," she added. "I would give any Olympic gold to do that."
Hamm is the most prolific goal-scorer in international soccer, scoring 158 times before retiring at the end of 2004, when the U.S. team won gold at the Athens Olympics. She scored her 100th goal in Rochester during the U.S. Women's Cup in 1998 but that game was played at Frontier Field, a converted baseball park a mile from the Rhinos' stadium.
"Evidently Rochester is the place to come if you want to score your 100th goal," said Wambach, a close friend of Hamm's.
"My teammates really made it happen for me today. I don't believe in coincidences any longer. It was meant to happen that way."
The United States is 39-3-4 all-time against Canada and outshot the visiting team 21-3. Wambach had a half-dozen chances on goal and just failed to connect on a diving header from Amy Rodriguez's cross in the 51st minute. Throughout the second half, young fans cheered her on with chants of "Let's Go, Abby."
It was Wambach's 129th international game. Canada's captain, Christine Sinclair, who has scored 99 times in 131 international starts, came closest to getting a goal when her header went wide off a corner kick in the 44th minute.
U.S. team mainstay Cat Whitehill played the first half before being substituted. She and Leslie Osborne, an unused substitute, rejoined the squad this month after being sidelined from national team duties by knee injuries since before the 2008 Olympics.
-- Ben Dobbin
Elsewhere
Villarreal opens preseason with 27-0 victory
GERONA, Spain — Villarreal began its Spanish league preparations with a 27-0 victory over minnows Navata in a preseason friendly on Sunday.
New arrival Jonathan Pereiro scored seven goals while strikers Joseba Llorente and Marcos Ruben notched four each as the topflight club beat the third division side from the Catalan league.
Villarreal finished fifth in the top league last season and will play in the Europa League — the former UEFA Cup competition — this season.
Colombian midfielder Molina moves to South Korea
SAO PAULO — Colombian midfielder Mauricio Molina has reached a deal to move from Brazil's Santos to South Korean club Seongnam Ilhwa.
Molina is expected to travel to South Korea this week to finalize details on his transfer.
"The financial part played a role in my decision, I had to think of my family," Molina told local media.
Financial details were not released.
Molina said he had already rejected an offer from the South Korean club last year and decided to stay with Santos at the time.
"My heart is going to stay here," Molina said. "Santos has won another fan."
The 28-year-old Molina scored 17 goals in 78 matches with Santos since debuting with the two-time national champion in 2008.
Lyon reaches 5-year deal for Aly Cissokho
LYON, France — Lyon has signed French defender Aly Cissokho from FC Porto on a five-year contract for €15 million ($24.3 million).
The 21-year-old Cissokho has passed a medical test and will start training on Monday, the club said on its Web site.
Earlier this month, Lyon signed striker Lisandro Lopez from Porto for €24 million ($39 million), which could rise to €28 million ($46 million) with performance bonuses.
The seven-time French champion has also signed winger Michel Bastos from Lille.
Cissokho will likely be the first choice at left back in coach Claude Puel's team, meaning Italy's World Cup-winning defender Fabio Grosso could leave soon.
Cissokho impressed for Porto in its Champions League quarterfinal against Manchester United last season. Two seasons ago, Cissokho was playing in the French second division with Gueugnon. He had been set to join AC Milan recently, but the Italian club pulled out of the deal after a medical test showed that Cissokho apparently had a dental problem that could cause muscular injuries.
Lyon is rebuilding after selling striker Karim Benzema to Real Madrid for €35 million ($57.4 million) and letting midfielder Juninho join Qatar's Al Gharafa on a free transfer.
Lyon still hopes to sign Toulouse striker Andre-Pierre Gignac, the French league's top scorer last season with 24 goals, or to buy back striker Loic Remy from Nice — a year after selling him.
Swiss captain Frei completes move to FC Basel
BASEL, Switzerland — Switzerland captain Alexander Frei has completed his transfer to FC Basel, the club said on its official Web site Sunday.
The 30-year-old striker signed a three-year contract after Basel reportedly paid German club Borussia Dortmund €4.25 million ($6 million) to bring back a player who spent three years at St. Jakob Park as a teenager.
Frei is Switzerland's record national team scorer with 39 goals in 67 international matches.
He spent three seasons with Dortmund and previously played for French club Rennes.
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