Portugal Dismisses Midfielder Kenedy
Portugal, the United States’ first opponent at the World Cup, Wednesday tossed Daniel Kenedy off the team after the 28-year-old midfielder tested positive for the banned diuretic furosemide, which can be used to mask other illegal substances.
Kenedy, who plays for Maritimo in the Portuguese first division, denied any wrongdoing.
“I want to make it clear that I did nothing with intent,” he said in Macao, the former Portuguese colony where the team is training. “I took something to lose weight.... Those pills had a substance that showed up in the test, and unfortunately that’s what happened.”
Kenedy was replaced by Hugo Viana, 19, of Sporting Lisbon.
The Portuguese soccer federation cited only medical reasons for dropping Kenedy, making no mention of the failed May 14 drug test.
Kenedy is the second player Coach Antonio Oliveira has had to exclude from the squad because of a failed drug test. In February, first-choice goalkeeper Joaquim “Quim” Silva was suspended after testing positive for the endurance-boosting substance nandrolone. As a result, he was not selected for the World Cup roster.
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Joseph “Sepp” Blatter, the FIFA president beset by accusations of corruption and financial mismanagement, arrived in South Korea and said at Inchon International Airport that he hoped “we speak more about football than about problems” in the days leading up to the May 31 start of the World Cup.
Blatter’s campaign for reelection against Issa Hayatou of Cameroon on Wednesday received the backing of the U.S., Germany and Kuwait. Robert S. Contiguglia, president of U.S. Soccer, released an open letter criticizing what he called the “negative rhetoric, histrionics and embarrassing behavior” of Blatter’s opponents.
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The 2002 CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup will be played in Pasadena, Fullerton, Seattle and Victoria, Canada, and also will serve as the qualifying tournament for the 2003 FIFA Women’s World Cup in China. The eight-nation event will be held Oct. 27-Nov. 9, with the final at the Rose Bowl.
The U.S. is the defending world champion but still has to qualify. It will play Mexico at the Rose Bowl on Oct. 27, a Caribbean team at Cal State Fullerton on Oct. 29 and a Central American team at Seattle on Nov. 2. The Gold Cup winner and runner-up will qualify for China, with the third-place team going to a playoff against the third-place team from Asia.
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Belgium Coach Robert Waseige announced that he will step down after the World Cup. The announcement came only days after Belgium defeated world champion France, 2-1, at Paris and after Waseige assailed the Belgian press for its lack of support.
“We have here in Belgium a negative, pessimistic press which systematically sees the worst in the team,” he said. “I regret that.”
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Veteran Youri Djorkaeff scored a hat trick and France rolled to a 5-1 warmup victory over the Urawa Reds of Japan’s J-League during heavy rain at the Japanese coastal resort of Ibusuki. Of more concern to Coach Roger Lemerre, however, was the pain in striker Thierry Henry’s right knee.
“We are going to do more tests on Sunday and, depending on the results, we will do what is necessary,” Lemerre said.
That was taken to mean that Henry, who helped Arsenal win the league and cup double in England, might be dropped from the roster, but a French spokesman later denied that possibility, saying, “for the time being the presence of Thierry Henry at the World Cup is not in doubt.”
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Argentina, the World Cup favorite, issued its player numbers, with the players assigned numbers 1 through 9 and 11 through 24. Argentina will have no No. 10, having been given permission by FIFA to exclude that number in honor of Diego Maradona.
Brazil, which does not need to withhold its No. 10 jersey because Pele will be remembered regardless, gave Rivaldo the honor of wearing that number.
Rivaldo, who finally has shaken off the right knee injury that has sidelined him for a month, was rebuffed in his efforts to wear a T-shirt bearing a message of peace that he intended to display during goal celebrations. FIFA has banned all T-shirt messages regardless of content.
