Price for Argentina’s Friendship: $1 Million

Argentina might have been a World Cup flop, but its national team continues to be a top attraction, at least in Japan.

Japanese organizers will pay the Argentine Football Assn. more than $1 million in appearance fees and expenses when Argentina plays Japan in a friendly in Tokyo in November, according to figures released Thursday.

The catch is that Argentina must bring virtually its entire World Cup team to the game, including all-time leading scorer Gabriel Batistuta, who announced his international retirement after the South Americans were ousted in the first round of Korea/Japan ’02.

The Argentine sports daily Ole quoted Julio Grondona, the AFA president, as saying that he favors Batistuta’s recall, but that the final decision is up to the player and Coach Marcelo Bielsa, who is expected to be rehired next week despite the World Cup failure.

Argentina will receive a $900,000 appearance fee and will have all its expenses paid for the November match.

A Diplomatic Tie

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger were among the 70,635 present at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., Thursday night to see European champion Real Madrid and AS Roma play to a 0-0 tie in a benefit game for the Global AIDS Fund.

Real Madrid created three clear scoring chances, but they were squandered by Roberto Carlos and Ivan Helguera in the first half and by Esteban Cambiasso in the second. Damiano Tomassi came closest to scoring for AS Roma.

Gold Cup Referees

Two referees from the United States and two from Canada are among 10 referees selected to officiate the CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup, which will be played Oct. 27-Nov. 9 at several sites, including the Rose Bowl and Cal State Fullerton.

Americans Sandra Hunt and Kari Seitz and Canadians Sonia Denoncourt and Jillanta Proctor will take part in the 12-nation tournament, which also serves as regional qualifying for the 2003 Women’s World Cup in China.

Also named were Varnette Laing (Bahamas), Ave Maria Alpizar (Costa Rica), Irazema Agullera (Cuba), Dianne Ferreira-James (Guyana), Virginia Tovar (Mexico) and Cassie Moore (Trinidad and Tobago).

Scolari Angered

For the second time in a week, Luis Felipe Scolari, Brazil’s World Cup-winning coach, postponed a decision on whether to continue in the post.

But Scolari, torn between the desires of the Brazilian soccer federation, which wants him to stay on, and his family, which wants him to step down, blasted reports in Rio de Janeiro that suggested his indecision was financially driven.

“When I joined the Brazil team, I was earning less money than I was at Cruzeiro,” he said, referring to his previous club job. “The people who invented this story have no brains.”

Cannavaro Signs

Italy national team defender Fabio Cannavaro was acquired Thursday by Inter Milan from Serie A rival Parma for a reported $14.58 million.

Cannavaro, 29, was hailed by Uruguay winger and new teammate Alvaro Recoba as “one of the strongest defenders in the world” and would have been an even more costly acquisition but for the financial crisis plaguing the Italian league.

He signed a four-year contract, terms of which were not revealed.

Best Recovering

Former Manchester United and Northern Ireland winger George Best, 56, was recovering satisfactorily at a London hospital Thursday, nine days after undergoing liver transplant surgery.

Best was up and walking unaided, a Cromwell Hospital spokesman said, adding that it will be some time before the 1968 European player of the year is discharged.

Chilean Referee Quits

Referee Francisco Caamano, who during a first-division game on Sunday kneed a player in the groin, allegedly in self-defense, resigned Thursday rather than face an anticipated lifetime ban from Chile’s soccer federation.

Refereeing officials rejected Caamano’s explanation of the incident, saying that television footage showed that he had kneed an Audax Italiano player in the groin and not in the thigh as he had claimed, before red-carding the player for feigning injury.

Asian Initiative

China, Japan and South Korea will hold the first edition of what is expected to become an annual tri-nation club championship from Feb. 16-22 in either Tokyo or Yokohama, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported.

The inaugural four-team event will feature the league champions of China and South Korea, along with Japan’s J-League champion and its Nabisco Cup winner. The tournament, scheduled for China in 2004 and South Korea in 2005, will offer $850,000 in prize money, with $400,000 going to the winner.

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LEADERS

*--* MLS SCORING Player GP G A Pts Twellman, New England 20 15 4 34 Ruiz, Galaxy 18 16 0 32 Diallo, NY-NJ 17 12 4 28 Graziani, San Jose 21 12 4 28 Razov, Chicago 17 11 4 26 Kreis, Dallas 20 12 2 26 Ralston, New England 20 5 15 25 Cunningham, Columbus 20 10 4 24 Chung, Colorado 20 8 7 23 Henderson, Colorado 21 9 4 22

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*--* GOALKEEPING Player GP MIN GA Avg Cannon, San Jose 20 1820 19 0.94 Thornton, Chicago 19 1763 21 1.07 Jordan, Dallas 19 1779 26 1.32 Rimando, DC United 20 1842 27 1.32 Garlick, Colorado 15 1374 24 1.57 Howard, NY-NJ 21 1923 34 1.59

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*--* WUSA SCORING Player GP G A Pts Katia, San Jose 20 15 5 35 Fotopoulos, Carolina 20 11 9 31 Prinz, Carolina 14 12 7 31 Pichon, Philadelphia 17 14 1 29 Meinert, Boston 20 7 15 29 Wambach, Washington 18 10 8 28 Milbrett, New York 18 10 8 28 Lilly, Boston 18 7 13 27 Mellgren, Boston 19 11 2 24 Hooper, Atlanta 18 11 2 24

*--*

*--* GOALKEEPING Player GP MIN GA Avg Moore, Philadelphia 19 1710 18 0.95 Mullinix, Washington 13 1057 14 1.19 Beene, San Jose 19 1710 26 1.37 Scurry, Atlanta 17 1530 24 1.41 Luckenbill, Carolina 20 1800 29 1.45 LeBlanc, Boston 16 1440 27 1.69

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