Mexico, Uruguay All Tied Up
Former team captain Paolo Montero headed in a late corner in his first international game in two years to help 10-man Uruguay tie Mexico, 2-2, in a Copa America Group B game Wednesday at Chiclayo, Peru.
Montero retired from international duty after leading Uruguay at the 2002 World Cup, but justified his recall by new Coach Jorge Fossati with his 88th-minute equalizer.
The presence of the Juventus defender helped Uruguay surprise favored Mexico by scoring first and last, after Richard Morales was ejected in the 81st minute for a late body slam on Pavel Pardo, who scored Mexico’s second goal.
Carlos Bueno also scored for Uruguay, and Ricardo Osorio scored for Mexico one minute into first-half injury time.
Mexico has retained the veteran core that led it to the 2001 Copa America final and the last two World Cups with the stated intention of winning the Copa America for the first time.
But Coach Ricardo Lavolpe said the team has to improve to achieve that goal.
“We need to keep working and be more creative,” Lavolpe said. “I would have been happy only if we won, but a point is a point and we’re still in the race.”
Fossati was pleased with Uruguay’s defense.
“That’s what worried us, and it was the first thing we needed to work on,” he said. “We’re headed in the right direction.”
In another Group B game at Chiclayo, Javier Saviola scored three goals and Argentina defeated Ecuador, 6-1.
Saviola scored in the 64th, 74th and 79th minutes. Christian Gonzalez, Andres D’Alessandro and Luis Gonzalez also scored for Argentina.
Legal Troubles
Three Kenyan Football Federation officials, including General Secretary Hussein Swaleh, were charged in Nairobi with two counts of theft each, part of a continuing dispute between the organization and the government.
Swaleh, Maina Kariuki, the federation’s chairman, and Mohammed Hatimy, the group’s treasurer, were charged with one count of stealing $202,564 and another of stealing $500,000 from the organization. All were released on bail.
Staying on the Job
Coach Otto Rehhagel, 65, who led Greece to a remarkable upset in winning the European Championship, will stay for two more years despite calls for him to coach his native Germany.
But Vassilis Gagatsis, head of the Greek soccer federation, said Rehhagel had turned down an offer to remain coach until 2008.
It’s a Done Deal
Thailand’s biggest beer company, Thai Beverages Marketing Co. Ltd., announced a sponsorship agreement with English Premier League club Everton that will allow its twin elephants logo to be displayed on the team’s shirts.
An Everton official said the club would receive about $2.8 million for a one-year contract sponsorship.
Jockeying for Position
The United States moved up two spots to No. 7 in the latest FIFA rankings, just behind Mexico, which dropped from No. 4.
Brazil remained at No. 1, followed by France and Spain. The Czech Republic jumped seven spots to No. 4, and Greece, buoyed by its European Championship title, jumped from No. 35 to No. 14.
