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Notebook Honduras says CONCACAF teams deserve more
Honduran coach Ramon Maradiaga says South American tournaments like the Copa America and the Copa Libertadores should open their doors to all CONCACAF teams, not just a few. "That would be an interesting innovation," he said. "It would give us an opportunity." The Copa America was a strictly South American affair until 1993, when Mexico was invited. Other selected teams from North and Central America have taken part since then. This year, Gold Cup winner Canada was to participate but backed out, and Costa Rica took its place. Honduras was a last-minute fill-in for Argentina, which also withdrew. The newcomers have done well. Mexico is a four-time semifinalist, Costa Rica reached the quarterfinals and Honduras is the tournament's sensation after knocking off Bolivia, Uruguay and Brazil. In the Copa Libertadores, two Mexican clubs and two Venezuelan teams compete for two slots. This year, Mexico's Cruz Azul reached the finals before falling to Boca Juniors of Argentina in penalty kicks. RematchStill smarting from a 2-0 loss to Honduras in the Copa America, Brazil is hungry for a rematch. Team supervisor Antonio Lopes said the Brazilian Soccer Confederation was trying to set up a friendly game with Honduras in Brazil next month. A possible date is Aug. 9 in Porto Alegre, where Brazil is to face Paraguay in a World Cup qualifier a week later, Lopes said. Honduras has accepted the challenge, according to a report on the Globo news agency web site. The loss Monday was Brazil's first ever to Honduras and eliminated the defending Cup champions from the tournament. They arrived home Wednesday. "The players wanted to play Honduras to pay back the defeat," Lopes told reporters in Brazil. He said the loss "hurt but wasn't a national embarrassment, because soccer is something where you win and lose."
Small screenPromoters of the Copa America have lifted a local TV blackout for the tournament final in Bogota on Sunday. The South American Soccer Confederation and Traffic, the Brazilian company that owns marketing rights, allowed the game to be televised after all 50,000 tickets were sold at El Campin stadium.
Secret weaponFor Honduras, Colombia's biggest weapon isn't on the field. On the eve of their semifinal match, Honduran players named Colombian coach Francisco Maturana as the team's big advantage. "The best part of Colombia is Maturana," Limbert Perez said. "He is more dangerous than any striker." Honduran coach Ramon Maradiaga agreed. "Everything about Colombia worries me, especially their coach," he said. "With him, Colombia becomes a giant and tactically solid." Maradiaga said the team had gone over videos of Colombia's games under Maturana "to learn Francisco's secrets [and] keep him from surprising us." Defender Samuel Caballero recalled that Honduras beat Colombia last year in the Gold Cup. But that was before Maturana took over. "Now with Maturana, the situation doubtlessly will be more complicated," he said. "The Colombian team is average without Maturana, but with him it is transformed into a superior team." Colombia is perfect in the Copa America so far, with four straight wins and not a goal allowed. Looking for the leadColombia's Victor Hugo Aristizabal is a goal away from the scoring lead in the Copa America, and his teammates are out to make sure he gets there. Aristizabal has five goals in the tournament and is tied with Paulo Wanchope of Costa Rica, which already was eliminated. He can thank Freddy Grisales, who set up one of Aristizabal's two goals in Colombia's 3-0 win over Peru in the quarterfinals. "Victor Hugo was very worried because he couldn't catch Wanchope, and I promised to help him," Grisales said. Aristizabal, who has a chance to take the lead on Thursday against Honduras, is grateful. "Without Freddy's help I wouldn't have a chance to be the high scorer of the Copa," he said. Only Amado Guevara of Honduras, with three goals, has a legitimate shot at catching the Colombian.
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