Diego Forlan scored a hat-trick to help Uruguay rout a shambolic Peru 6-0 in their World Cup qualifier on Tuesday.
Forlan’s striking partner Carlos Bueno scored two goals and substitute Sebastian Abreu added another in the final minute.
Peru striker Paolo Guerrero was sent off after 39 minutes for furiously protesting the penalty which led to the second goal.
PHOTO: AP
Uruguay, who had drawn their last two home games in the South American group, moved on to eight points from six games while Peru, beaten 5-1 in Ecuador in November, remained on three after another heavy defeat.
Peru also lost 4-0 to Mexico in a friendly 10 days ago and the latest setback is widely expected to cost coach Jose del Solar his job.
Virtually out of contention for a World Cup place, they face the prospect of another 12 games in the group including visits to Brazil and Argentina.
The loss left Peru winless with three points from six matches, ahead of only Bolivia, which has one point.
Del Solar would not be drawn on his future afterwards.
“My job is open and I have understood that the directors will make an evaluation after this game. Now I will sit down and talk to them,” he told Peruvian media.
“I’m the main one responsible for this ... It seems that we took the game as finished with more than 70 minutes to play. Situations like that cannot happen,” he said.
The hosts went ahead when Ignacio Gonzalez found Forlan with a raking diagonal pass and the Atletico Madrid striker lobbed the ball over Leao Butron in the eighth minute.
Uruguay goalkeeper Juan Castillo made his only save of the game shortly afterwards when he blocked a Nolberto Solano shot after which it became a no-contest.
Forlan converted a penalty in the 38th minute after Guerrero was controversially judged to have pushed Diego Godin, sparking furious protests from the Peruvian players.
Despite being held back by his team mates, Guerrero continued to remonstrate afterwards and was shown his second yellow card.
Forlan completed his hat-trick in the 57th minute, heading home unchallenged, and Bueno, also unmarked, headed his first from a corner four minutes later.
Bueno was on target in the 69th minute after a one-two with Gonzalez by which time Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez appeared too embarrassed to celebrate the goals.
Uruguay continued to pour forward, squandering a succession of chances before Abreu fired the sixth in the last minute.
■CUBA WIN IN ANTIGUA
AP, ST. JOHN’S, Antigua
Second-half substitute Leonel Pla scored a late goal to give Cuba a 4-3 victory over Antigua and Barbuda in the first leg of their World Cup qualifier on Tuesday.
His 85th minute left roughly 7,000 fans at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. disappointed ahead of the second leg in Cuba on Sunday.
Antigua opened the scoring in the ninth minute when Teran Williams found the net, but Jaime Valencia quickly responded for Cuba with his first of two goals a minute later.
Kerry Skepple put Antigua back in the lead in the 13 minute before Joel Valencia drew Cuba level again in the 22nd.
Valencia scored his second goal in the 74th minute, but Antiguan Tyio Simon answered for the home side seven minutes later.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) is considering reducing its pitch clock by two seconds to help players better adjust to the rules applied at the World Baseball Classic (WBC). The proposal aims to shorten the pitch timer from 25 seconds to 23 seconds with the bases empty, and from 20 seconds to 18 seconds with runners on base. Currently, the WBC mandates that pitchers deliver a pitch every 18 seconds with the bases empty and 15 seconds with runners on base. The issue was raised during a pre-season CPBL managers’ meeting on Tuesday by Rakuten Monkeys bench and batting
RSS