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| June 4, 2002 | Tuesday | Rabi-ul-Awwal 22,1423 |
Blanco inspires Mexico, Vieri’s double sinks debutant Ecuador
Italy 2 Ecuador 0
NIIGATA (Japan), June 3: Cuauhtemoc Blanco inspired Mexico to a deserved 1-0 win over 10-man Croatia after Boris Zivkovic conceded a penalty and became the first man to be sent off in these finals in the group G opener Monday.Blanco converted the 59th-minute penalty after being felled in the area by Zivkovic, who was shown a straight red card for the bad tackle by Chinese referee Jun Lu.
It was a timely breakthrough for Mexico, who are hoping to match their best finishes as hosts in 1970 and 1986 when they made the quarter-finals.
But Croatia, criticised back home for their unadventurous approach under coach Mirko Jozic, showed none of the sparkle that helped them finish third in the competition four years ago.
The triumvirate of Robert Prosinecki, 1998 Golden Boot winner Davor Suker and World Cup new boy Alen Boksic even suffered the ignominy of being substituted as Croatia struggled to make an impact.
Both halves began promisingly enough for Jozic’s side, as Josip Simunic — after four minutes — and Zvonimir Soldo — a minute into the second period — saw their goalbound headers brilliantly saved by keeper Oscar Perez.
But Mexico soon looked to Blanco’s probing and, after dropping deep to display some nice touches, he saw his goalbound header clutched by Pletikosa eight minutes before the break.
By that stage, Blanco’s strike partner Jared Borgetti had wasted Mexico’s best opening as he sidefooted wide from close range after 32 minutes.
But Blanco was a constant threat, even testing Pletikosa direct from an inswinging corner just before the interval.
Thirteen minutes after halftime, he was alert to a loose ball as Croatia’s last line of defence — usually so strong — wavered.
Blanco nudged the ball ahead of Zivkovic, who sent his opponent tumbling and, with Blanco through on goal, Lu had little option but to dismiss the Bayer Leverkusen player.
Blanco sent Pletikosa the wrong way from the spot to claim his 17th international goal on his 76th appearance.
Italy striker Christian Vieri struck twice to give his team a 2-0 win over Ecuador in their opening group G tie.
The Italians showed why they are among the favourites with an efficient display against the south American side making their first appearance in the tournament. Italy top the group standings, ahead on goal difference of Mexico who beat Croatia 1-0 earlier on Monday.
Vieri, who scored five goals in five games at the 1998 World Cup, quickly confirmed that he will again be one of the dangermen with a powerhouse display.
Italy coach Giovanni Trapattoni’s decision to play Francesco Totti in an advanced role alongside Vieri paid off handsomely.
The pair combined to open the scoring in the seventh minute — Totti screwing the ball back from the byline into the path of the onrushing Vieri who swept the ball past Cevalloss with a clinical left-foot finish from 10 metres.
Totti, living up to his billing as Italy’s key creative force, went close to a goal of his own just four minutes later, crashing a 20-metre shot just wide after a smart turn.
There was little work for the Italian defence, but when Ecuador’s main marksman Agustin Delgado did found the slightest opening he was swiftly surrounded by three defenders.
Vieri doubled the Italian advantage in the 27th minute, outpacing Ulises De la Cruz as he chased a long ball over the top, and although Cevallos blocked the shot with his legs, the ball span goalwards and Vieri had the simple task of knocking it into an empty net.
Ecuador coach Hernan Dario Gomez brought on Carlos Tenorio at the break in a bid to bolster his attack but Italy rarely give up a two-goal lead and typically took few risks in the second half.
Alessandro Del Piero came on for Totti with 16 minutes remaining to claim his 50th cap as the Italians wound down the clock in a confident start to their campaign.—Reuters
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