SOCCER CONCACAF GOLD CUP : The Sport Wins and So Does U.S. Team, 3-2
It was difficult to determine the biggest winner Wednesday night at the Coliseum. Certainly the biggest smile belonged to Chuck Blazer, which is appropriate because he was the originator of the “Happy Face” buttons in the 1960s.
As general secretary of the Confederation of North and Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF), which organized the Gold Cup to determine a champion for the region, he hardly needed a lapel button to demonstrate his glee when the attendance was announced as 36,703 for an eight-hour, four-game extravaganza.
But there were some surprises on the field as well, including the United States’ 3-2 victory over Costa Rica and Honduras’ 1-1 tie with Mexico.
In Friday’s semifinals at the Coliseum, Honduras and Costa Rica meet at 6:30 p.m. and the United States and Mexico play at 8:30 p.m.
U.S. Coach Bora Milutinovic summed up the experience by concluding, “Today, soccer won.”
Even though he claimed he had nothing at stake personally, Milutinovic has to rank high on the list of winners because the team he has been coaching for only two months was playing against his former team, which he led into the second round of last year’s World Cup.
Because of its success in Italy and because of its 4-2-1 record against the United States entering the game, Costa Rica was favored, although it had a 1-1 record in this tournament after dropping a game to Trinidad and Tobago. The United States was undefeated in its first two games.
Despite a goal by U.S. forward Peter Vermes in the sixth minute, the game went true to form in the first half. After falling behind, Costa Rica went on the attack and took a 2-1 lead into the dressing room after goals in the 30th minute by Juan Carlos Argueda and in the 33rd minute by Claudio Jara.
But good things have been happening to the U.S. team, which has lost only once in eight games since Milutinovic arrived.
Four minutes into the second half, Costa Rican defender Roger Flores was called for a hand ball inside the goal area on a shot by U.S. forward Ted Eck. The United States was awarded a penalty kick, which was converted by midfielder Hugo Perez.
Ten minutes later, after a U.S. corner kick into the penalty area, Costa Rican defender Hector Marchena accidentally kicked the ball into his team’s net to give the United States the decisive goal.
Costa Rica Coach Rolando Villalobos said that the more talented team lost, which might be true, but it was apparent that the fitter team won because the Costa Ricans were unable to maintain their first-half pace.
After praising his former team, Milutinovic said that the United States has achieved its goal.
“We make preparation for the 1994 World Cup, not this Cup,” he said.
Organizers congratulated themselves for the attendance, which they attributed to their decision to allow children 14 and under into Wednesday’s games free, a policy that will not be in effect for the remainder of the tournament; and to a Mexican network’s decision to televise the games into the Los Angeles area on a tape-delayed basis instead of live.
