Football Dispatch

Thursday Football
03 July 2008
by Jerrad Peters

LDU Quito became the first Ecuadorian winner of the Copa Libertadores, Wednesday, after surviving a desperate fightback from Fluminense to claim the South American title on penalties. Leading 4-2 on aggregate, LDU struck quickly through Luis Bolanos before a Thiago Neves hat-trick leveled matters before the hour-mark. The hosts could not carry the momentum into the shootout, however, as LDU prevailed 3-1 from the spot.

The loss spoiled an otherwise raucous evening at the Maracana, where 86,000 fans had gathered to watch their club lift a first continental trophy. So confident were the Brazilians that manager Renato Gaucho had guaranteed victory after dropping the first leg at the altitude of the Quito.

“They had their chance and didn’t take it,” he stated. “Now, it’s our turn. The supporters can go to the Maracana and they will leave happy. I can guarantee that.”

Washington, who scored six goals through the competition, echoed the remarks of his coach.

“LDU’s best player, the altitude, is not coming,” said the 33-year-old in the run-up to the match. “We’re going to maintain our 100 per-cent record at the Maracana.”

But while Fluminense prevailed 3-1 at the famous stadium to knot the aggregate scoreline at five goals apiece, their performance from the spot was nothing short of abysmal. After misses from Dario Conca and Thiago Neves, Cicero scored the only penalty for the hosts. Washington missed on the fourth attempt.

LDU, conversely, opened with a successful conversion from captain Patricio Urrutia before Jairo Campos missed. But the visitors regrouped with goals from Franklin Augustin Salas and Joffre Guerron Mendez to win the match and the competition. They will now represent the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL) at the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup in Japan.

Representative of international supremacy in club football, the tournament will run from December 12-21. Manchester United, Pachuca, and Waitakere United have already been confirmed as participants representing UEFA, CONCACAF, and OFC, respectively. The champions of Asia, Africa, and Japan have yet to be determined.

Boyaca Chico are in the drivers’ seat of the 2008 Copa Mustang final after earning a 1-1 draw at America de Cali on Wednesday. The championship of the opening Columbian tournament will now shift to Tunja for the second leg on July 6.

Having qualified from a semifinal grouping which included Independiente Medellin, Deportes Quindio, and Deportivo Cali, Chico opened the scoring Estadio Pascual Guerrero after 19 minutes when Nestor Salazar scored against the run of play. America had dominated the proceedings until the goal; and the crowd, almost entirely clad in red and creating a virtual snowstorm with long, white ribbons, fell into a nervous hush.

They were back on their feet before the interval, however. Gustavo Adrian Ramos equalized in the 41st-minute and the two sides battled to a draw after a scoreless second period.

America, having finished in seventh-place after the 18-match first round schedule, qualified for the final by finishing atop semifinal Group A. The bracket also included Envigado, Santa Fe, and La Equidead.

Toronto FC are poised to land forwards Paul Dickov and Darren Huckerby. Director of Soccer Mo Johnson is desperate to enhance the Major League Soccer club’s offense and welcomed both players to BMO Field as his personal guests for Tuesday’s Nutrilite Canadian Championship match against Vancouver Whitecaps.

Despite being in the mix for a playoff berth in the Eastern Conference, Toronto have scored just 18-goals in 14-matches. Only New York Red Bulls, Kansas City Wizards, and San Jose Earthquakes have been more futile in the attacking third. Defensively, however, Toronto’s 18-goals conceded ranks among the best in the league.

Dickov, now 35-years-old, finished the 2007-08 season at Blackpool where he scored 6-goals in 11-matches while on loan from Manchester City. Nicknamed “The Wasp” by former City manager Joy Royle, the tenacious striker has been capped 10-times by Scotland and also represented Arsenal, Luton, Brighton, Leicester city, Blackburn Rovers, Crystal Palace, and Manchester City. Johnson is thought to fancy Dickov as an ideal partner for Danny Dichio.

Huckerby, meanwhile, is without a club after being released by Norwich City in June. Adept as both a striker and winger, the 32-year-old led the Canaries to First Division championships in 2002 and 2004. While at Carrow Road, Huckerby established himself as one of the most consistent players in the second flight of English football. That said, his abilities never translated into success in the Premier League. But as the talent level in Major League Soccer falls somewhere between the modern Football League Championship and League One, Johnson is of the mind that Huckerby can become one of the more dominant players in North America.

After helping River Plate to the 2008 Clausura, Falcao is entertaining offers from Real Madrid, Juventus, and Manchester United. Named after the Brazilian footballing legend, the 22-year-old Columbia international scored 19-goals for the Buenos Aires club in 2007-08 after making a full recovery from a devastating knee injury suffered in the summer of 2005. In 58 league matches for the club since making his first-team debut three years ago, Falcao has scored an incredible 38-goals while establishing himself as a regular in Jorge Luis Pinto’s national setup.

Having been likened to Carlos Tevez, United see Falcao as good value for the 15M-pounds which River Plate are requesting in exchange for his signature. Put off by Tottenham Hotspur’s 30M-pound price-tag on Dimitar Berbatov, Sir Alex Ferguson is thought to be keener on bringing a younger, more malleable player to Old Trafford.

Madrid, meanwhile, will make an offer for the former Millonarios forward if Robinho opts to bold the Bernabeau for Chelsea. Juventus, with both Alessandro Del Piero and David Trezeguet on the wrong side of 30, are hoping to add a youthful forward to a very veteran squad.

Have a question about football? Email your query to jerradpeters@gmail.com.

Jerrad Peters covers football for the Winnipeg Free Press, Soccer Three-Sixty magazine, ESPN Soccernet, and Soccer365.com. His work has also appeared on TheMirror.co.uk, Canadian-soccer.com, Footy247.co.uk, Foot2ball.com, and Squadinfo.com.

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