HexagonalBlog

A trip to Glendale

On Sunday I went to the final round of matches in Group C at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale.  It really is quite a facility.  I've been there for three different sporting events (NFL football, college basketball, and soccer), and I participated in a behind-the-scenes tour of the stadium last year, so I've seen the UP stadium from a variety of perspectives.  It's not too far from Phoenix (about 10 miles west of central Phoenix), so if you're in the area I highly recommend the tour.  Especially if you're a Maricopa county resident so that you see where your tax dollars went!

With Mexico's place in the quarterfinals confirmed I didn't think the final round of matches would be very interesting, then remembered that they could still finish between first and third in the group, so I decided to go to the game on Sunday morning.  I arrived in time for the first match between Nicaragua and Panama, and there was a small line in front of the ticket booth.  There was a sprinkling of fans inside the stadium when the two teams walked onto the field.

There were a few Panama fans waving Panamanian flags, and maybe 10 Nicaragua fans wearing hats and Federation shirts.  The rest were either Mexican fans waiting for the second game or neutral gringos like me who just wanted to check out a soccer game.

As for the first game, I didn't find it very compelling.  Panama were a stronger team physically and technically than Nicaragua, but they needed to score a goal to feel comfortable about their chances.    You had a feeling it was inevitable unless Panama decided to play really poorly, and I didn't see that happening.  Blas Pérez scored on a beautiful flying header -- what made it such a good play was that the initial cross took a deflection off a Nicaraguan player on the right, but Pérez picked up the path of the ball and ran into space to head the ball home.  The red card to Nicaragua's López effectively ended any chance of coming back, and Gómez's goal before the hour mark opened the floodgates.  Tejada added two more in the final 15 minutes.  So Panama were through to the quarterfinal round, and Jamaica were out.

While this was going on, the lower bowl was filling up with the green shirts of the Mexican supporters.  I was actually looking forward to this match -- I wanted to see if Guadeloupe were as good as they appeared to be in this Gold Cup and the previous one. 

Once again, I was disappointed.  Guadeloupe didn't put forward much in terms of attack, and Mexico were finding Bravo time and again up front.  Bravo really should have scored in the opening minute, and had some other chances later on, but the Guadeloupe 'keeper Fausta kept his team in the game.  (I had to search on a website for his name because CONCACAF didn't list player numbers in their complimentary program guides.)  Finally, Mexico scored from a goal out of nowhere.  Torrado received the ball outside the area and launched a rocket that Fausta got a hand to but could not stop.  It was still rising when it hit the back of the net. 

In the second half, Mexico were much closer to their second goal than Guadeloupe were to their first, and then the wheels came off the Caribbean side.  First Vertot received a second yellow card, then Godin got a straight red for a studs-up tackle.  Near the end, Sabah struck a fine header off a corner, and Mexico had clinched first place in Group C.  They made it harder for themselves than it should have been, but in the end they finished where they were supposed to finish, and they will avoid the USA until the final.  Mexico can exhale, and so can CONCACAF.  I'm certain they didn't want to see the top two teams in the region meet in the quarterfinal.

So I saw six goals in two matches, but I wasn't impressed with the level of soccer as a whole.  I was expecting more from Guadeloupe but didn't see it, and Mexico, while improved, are far from their best.  Panama routed Nicaragua by getting to deflections first, and Nicaragua's quest ended before it had even started. 

As for CONCACAF, I'm not sure what they gained by having matches in Glendale.  I can't imagine that they've made a lot of money from this venue -- parking was free (almost unheard of at University of Phoenix Stadium), and there were around 24,000 people in the stadium.  I don't know how much the stadium costs to operate, but I wouldn't be surprised if CONCACAF made a net revenue of low six figures, at best. 

One more thing: those plastic horns are annoying.  I don't know why the European players were so shocked with the vuvuzelas in South Africa; we in North America have had to deal with those obnoxious things for 15 years!

Salvadoran players suspended for UNCAF Cup fracas

You might remember that back in January, El Salvador failed to complete their UNCAF Cup semifinal match against Costa Rica because they had too few players on the field.  Two of their players had been sent off, all of the substitutions had been used up, and three players -- Juan José Gómez, Deris Umanzor, and Rodolfo Zelaya -- suffered injuries in quick succession that forced them to leave the field.

Costa Rica accused the players of faking their injuries and their team doctor of being complicit in the fraud, and UNCAF stepped in to investigate.  Today UNCAF suspended Gómez, Umanzor, and Zelaya for the first two matches of the Gold Cup, suspended the team doctor José María Rivas for a year, and fined El Salvador's football federation US$20,000.  The UNCAF ruling stated that, in their opinion, the statements of the three players and the team doctor about the nature of the injuries and the manner in which they occurred were inconsistent with the video evidence, the results of the medical exams did not confirm with the stated injuries, and the players, despite their injuries, participated in national team matches immediately afterward.

These suspensions are a big blow to El Salvador's chances at the Gold Cup, as Zelaya and Gómez have played vital roles for the national team (Zelaya played very well against the USA in March).  But this ruling may not be the end of their troubles; it's possible that CONCACAF and FIFA could impose additional sanctions not only against the players and doctor, but also the national team coach and the head of the Normalization Committee.

Initial thoughts on the Gold Cup

As you all know, the draw for the Gold Cup was last Thursday.  You can find the draw and match schedule here.

Once again, the draw is set up to keep the USA and Mexico apart until the final.  I suppose that could be sabotaged by USA or Mexico finishing third in their groups, but I don't see that happening.

The result of all this is that once again Canada have found themselves in the most difficult group.  I see three tough games for them, but it will be three tough games for everyone in Group A.  It could come down to which team scores a win, so maybe four or five points will be enough to go through.

Group B is the second most difficult, but I see more separation between USA and Honduras and Grenada and Haiti.  The USA-Honduras match will be the pick of the group stage, and Grenada might be able to edge Haiti for third place.  I don't know who will score Haiti's goals in this tournament; they've had difficulty scoring goals in the qualifying tournament.

(And I managed to miss the news that Cuba had withdrawn from the Gold Cup, ostensibly due to "player development issues."  I'm willing to guess that the risk of defections in the USA was a contributing factor.)

Group C is the easiest group of the three, as Mexico will face a Panamanian team in transition, a debutante Nicaragua, and the French department Guadeloupe.  The Caribbeans might give the Mexicans more of a fight, but I can't see how Mexico, even in its current mediocre form, cannot finish in first place.

So those are my initial impressions of the groups; I'll try to put down something more detailed before late June.

Gold Cup groups announced

These came out during the morning, but I was only able to publish them now:

Group A: Canada, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Jamaica
Group B: USA, Honduras, Haiti, Grenada
Group C: Mexico, Panama, Nicaragua, Guadeloupe

Thirteen sites???

They're playing the Gold Cup in thirteen different sites?!?  Are CONCACAF nuts?  This is going to be the mother of all logistical nightmares.  And how will CONCACAF ever make a profit from operating a tournament in thirteen stadia?  The federation is boasting that no other continental tournament has been conducted at so many locations, and only two World Cup finals have been played in a larger quantity of stadia.  They're forgetting that the World Cup is being played between 24 or 32 nations, almost all of whom will have sizeable numbers of traveling fans following them around the country.  Such a phenomenon does not exist during the Gold Cup, and other than the USA and Mexico, the level of support for the other Central American and Caribbean countries isn't very great outside of south Florida, southern California, or New York. 

I did notice that there will be a first-round match in Glendale on Sunday 12 July.  Hmmm...that has potential.  But that match will definitely be played with the roof closed - in the Phoenix area, the temperature won't drop below 35 C until well after 9pm.

I would look for CONCACAF to make their draw and then arrange the match schedule accordingly.  Mexico will play that quarterfinal match in Dallas, guaranteed. 

It would be nice to see a Gold Cup match in Arizona, but I still think CONCACAF's idea is nuts.  I can't see how they will be able to finish the tournament with a profit and without teams, fans, and press members raising a big stink.

UNCAF Cup: Panama are champions

The UNCAF Nations Cup comes to a close with the third-place match between Honduras and El Salvador, and the final between Costa Rica and Panama.  Honduras and El Salvador could not be motivated any less for that game, while Costa Rica will seek a seventh Central American title.

I won't be able to follow the match live because I'll be watching the Super Bowl (so I like other types of football, sue me), but those who want to comment on the match may do so here.

UPDATE:  Panama are the new champions of Central America, after defeating Costa Rica 5-3 on penalties (match finished 0-0). 

UNCAF Cup: Semifinal #2 (Panama to the final!)

The second semifinal between the host nation Honduras and Panama is being played right now.  Panama has taken a surprise 1-0 lead into halftime, thanks to a long-range strike by Ricardo Phillips on 38 minutes.  Honduras have had more of the possession but Panama have looked dangerous when they embark on counterattacks.  The crowd in Tegucigalpa has been loud and the intensity level hasn't dipped despite the Panamanian goal. 

I'll make an update at the end of the second half.

UPDATE:  Panama have done it!  Honduras had most of the possession, but Panama blocked, scrapped, deflected, and saved  in order to preserve the win.  It looked like one of those days when Honduras would dominate on the field yet lose the game thanks to one critical lapse, deflection, or stroke of luck.  It seems to happen quite a bit to Honduras at the wrong time.

So on Sunday, Panama will play Costa Rica in a repeat of the 2007 UNCAF final, won by Costa Rica on penalties.   Costa Rica will be going for their seventh Central American title, and they have a very good chance of achieving that.

Costa Rica to the UNCAF final

Costa Rica have advanced to the final of the UNCAF Nations Cup, but their semifinal match against El Salvador has finished in bizarre fashion.  El Salvador were reduced to ten men in the 14th minute when Alexander Escobar received a straight red card from Panamanian referee Roberto Moreno for elbowing Costa Rican midfielder Pablo Herrera.  The commentators on ESPN Deportes did not think that Escobar had actually thrown an elbow, but in the end he was gone, and Salvadoran playmaker Eliseo Quintanilla was booked for protesting Moreno's decision.  That would be a critical moment for El Salvador.

[UPDATE 1940: I just saw some video highlights, and it was a harsh challenge but I couldn't tell if there was an elbow involved.  At least a yellow, but a red I'm not sure about.]

Costa Rica took the lead through Andy Furtado's goal on 18 minutes, and then Quintanilla managed to get himself sent off seven minutes later.  Trying to win a penalty, he dove flailed inside the penalty area but his only reward was a second yellow card.  Why the captain and playmaker, already on a yellow card, would attempt to fake a foul in the penalty area is beyond my understanding. 

Carlos de los Cobos made two substitutions at halftime which, combined with a substitution made in the 20th minute, exhausted all of El Salvador's substitutions.  Five minutes later one of their players pulled up lame and had to withdraw, then five minutes after that two more players had to be carried off on a stretcher.  The match can't continue if there are less than seven players on the field, so the match was finished. 

The Costa Rican press  is going ballistic right now, calling El Salvador's performance "shameful" and doubting the veracity of the Salvadoran players' injuries.   It looks like Costa Rica may be awarded a 3-0 victory, but I'm not sure.

The next semifinal, between Honduras and Panamá, should start in about 15 minutes (0200 GMT).

Nicaragua makes history, advances to the Gold Cup

Nicaragua have achieved the biggest result in their footballing history after defeating Guatemala 2-0 to advance to the CONCACAF Gold Cup for the first time.  The hero was Real Estelí's Samuel Wilson, who scored in the 39th minute of the first half and the 39th minute of the second half. 

UNCAF Cup, Day 6 (The end of the group phase)

The group phase of the UNCAF Nations Cup concluded tonight with Panama facing Guatemala in Group B.   Panama won 1-0 on a goal by Alberto Zapata on 31 minutes.  The press reports said that they played most of the match with ten men, but those reports didn't say who and how.

So Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Panama have confirmed their places in this summer's Gold Cup.  The field at Estadio Nacional will get 48 hours to heal, and then Guatemala will face off against Nicaragua on Thursday for fifth place and the final place in the Gold Cup.  The semifinals on Friday look like these:

Honduras vs. Panama
Costa Rica vs. El Salvador

The third-place match and the final will be played on Sunday.