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Another early exit? Struggling Brazil loses opening Gold Cup match to MexicoPosted: Sunday July 13, 2003 4:48 PMUpdated: Monday July 14, 2003 5:33 AM
MEXICO CITY (AP) -- Jared Borgetti scored the decisive goal in the 79th minute Sunday as Mexico edged Brazil 1-0 in the opening round of the Gold Cup. Brazil outplayed the hosts for much of the afternoon, but Daniel Osorno set up the game-winner by shaking off his defender and feeding a centering pass from the left side to Borgetti, who headed the ball home from point-blank range. Many viewed the match as a must-win for Mexico's much-maligned Argentine coach Ricardo Lavolpe. Before Sunday, the "Tri" had gone just 1-2-4 since Lavolpe took over as coach following last year's World Cup. Lavolpe said before the game he thought his players would "rise to the challenge and respond to such an important game." They did, as Mexico was able to capitalize on the visitors' bigger, but under-experienced defenders. When it was over, Lavolpe said the win "helped to restore order to this team." "This was an important triumph for our players' confidence," he said. "The team didn't play a great game, but the players gave a strong performance." In the opening minutes, Mexico moved the ball deep into Brazil's zone several times, but Brazil used a ragged-but-swarming defense to frustrate the home team and the late-arriving crowd of 70,000 at the Mexican capital's cavernous Azteca Stadium. Mexico's best early chance came in the 10th minute, when Rafael Garcia broke free in the center and fired a shot from the top of the box. The strike beat Brazilian goalkeeper Gomes, but sailed wide of the right post. Brazil recovered and controlled the rest of the first half, attacking Mexico's defense again and again. In the 22nd minute, Brazilian Robinho outran two defenders, but his close-range offering just missed to the left. In the 54th minute, a blocked shot sent the ball sailing across the midfield line. Brazil's Kaka raced down an empty field toward an open shot, but Sanchez came out of the net and used a slide-tackle to breakup the play. Many Brazilian faithful in the stands screamed for a foul, but none was called. Brazil's last good scoring chance came in the 72nd minute, when Kaka broke free on the left side and launched a looping shot that moved parallel to the goal and graced its right post before bouncing away. Mexico now leads Group A and can clinch a quarterfinal berth with a win over Honduras on Thursday. The top two teams in each of the Gold Cup's four groups advance to the quarterfinals next Saturday in Foxboro, Massachusetts, where two games will be played, and Miami and Mexico City, which will host one game each. The winners will move on to the semifinals July 23 in Miami and July 24 in Mexico City. The championship match set for the Mexican capital July 27. The Gold Cup is the championship of North and Central America and the Caribbean and is of less importance to Brazil, who was invited to participate along with Colombia. Brazil sent its under-23 team to Mexico and coach Ricardo Gomes has said his squad is not favored to win the tournament. The last time Brazil was invited to the Gold Cup was in 1998, when its national team took third place. The team Mexico topped Sunday is stocked with Robinho, Kaka and Diego. Many believe the trio will be top performers during the 2006 World Cup in Germany. "We could have come away with a victory," Gomes said. "We had better opportunities to score than they did." Lineups: Mexico: Oswaldo Sanchez, Fernando Salazar, Omar Briceno, Ricardo Osorio Mendoza, Octavio Valdez, Pavel Pardo, Jared Borgetti, Miguel Zepeda (Luis Perez, 47), Salvador Carmona, Rafael Garcia (Daniel Osorno, 68), Jesus Arellano (Juan Pablo Rodriguez, 68). Brazil: Gomes, Maicon, Luisao, Alex, Adriano, Paulo Almeida, Julio Baptista, Kaka, Ewerthon (Thiago Motta, 53), Diego (Nilmar, 73), Robinho. Referee: Rodolfo Sibrian (El Salvador).
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