Russia Scores 1-0 Victory at Yugoslavia
Russia moved closer to a berth in next year’s World Cup and severely dented Yugoslavia’s chances on Wednesday with a 1-0 victory at Belgrade.
Vladimir Beschastnykh netted the only goal 18 minutes from the end at the Red Star stadium as the Russians moved five points clear at the top of Europe’s Group 1 with the Yugoslavs back in fourth, eight points behind.
It was a grim result for the hosts, especially with Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica attending. But there were problems even before kickoff, when striker Predrag Mijatovic, who plays in Italy for Fiorentina, walked out because he was furious at being relegated to the substitutes’ bench by Coach Milovan Djoric. The fans were unhappy too, chanting “Djoro, Go” at the unpopular coach.
Group 2 leader Ireland used goals by Kevin Kilbane, Mark Kinsella and Gary Breen to defeat Andorra, 3-1, and take three-point edge over the Netherlands and Portugal.
The Netherlands moved into second place on goal difference after beating Cyprus, 4-0. First-half goals by Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Marc Overmars and Patrick Kluivert were followed by a second-half score by Ruud van Nistelrooy, two days after he signed for Manchester United for $28.5 million.
In Group 3, Iceland scored a 4-1 victory at last-place Malta after the home team had taken the lead on a goal by Carmel Busuttil.
In Group 6, at Riga, Latvia, the hosts tied, 1-1, to give San Marino its first away point. Marian Pahars scored for Latvia after only 46 seconds, but Nicola Albini got the equalizer in the 60th minute.
In Group 7, Austria went to the top by defeating Liechtenstein, 2-0, on goals by Eduard Glieder and Thomas Flogel.
In South America, host Brazil could only manage a 1-1 tie with Peru at Sao Paulo as Brazil Coach Emerson Leao left many of the top players off the roster and mounted a team that looked a lot like Sao Paulo’s Corinthians.
After spending most of the first half being called offsides, Romario broke through for Brazil in the 65th minute, getting a feed from Vampeta and dribbling around Miranda to score. Peru’s Pajuelo answered, taking a long pass from midfield and firing a header past Rogerio in the 77th minute.
