Italy ousted by Uruguay
Costa Rica wins Group D; England heads home winless
Uruguay fought — and apparently even bit — it’s way past 10-man Italy 1-0 Tuesday to reach the second round of the World Cup, a victory overshadowed by a biting incident involving Luis Suarez.
Captain Diego Godin scored in the 81st minute, rising above a crowd of defenders to meet a corner with his left shoulder and veteran goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon had no chance.
Moments earlier, replays showed Suarez apparently bite the shoulder of Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini as the pair clashed in the Italian penalty area.
Late Tuesday night, FIFA announced that its disciplinary committee has opened proceedings against the Uruguay forward. If the panel finds Suarez guilty of assaulting an opponent, FIFA rules call for a ban of at least two matches up to a maximum of 24 months.
A decision must be published before Saturday, when Uruguay plays Colombia in a round-of-16 match.
Suarez was already sanctioned with a heavy ban for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic in the English Premier League in 2013 and FIFA can sanction players for biting with bans of up to two years.
Chiellini said Suarez should have been sent off and that the red card for Italy midfielder Claudio Marchisio should never have been given.
“The red for Marchisio and not sending off Suarez were ridiculous,” Chiellini said. “It was absolutely clear. There’s even a mark,” Chiellini said of the bite.
The referee didn’t see a bite, and no foul was called. Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez only had eyes on the result. “For me, and for all the people in Uruguay, we had more important things,” he said.
About a minute after the incident, the decisive goal was scored on a powerful thrust of head and shoulder from Godin that somehow had perfect direction. Italy was down to 10 men since the 59th minute, when Claudio Marchisio received a red card for putting his boot into Egidio Arevalo’s knee.
Itwas the second straight time that Italy, a four-time champion, went out in the first round.
After the game, Italy coach Cesare Prandelli immediately resigned and midfield maestro Andrea Pirlo retired from international play.
Costa Rica 0, England 0: Costa Rica fi nished fi rst in what many considered the World Cup’s toughest group. Costa Rica only needed a draw to top Group D and played that way, setting up in a defensive 5- 3-2 formation. The result gives Costa Rica its best World Cup performance, winning a group that contained former three world champions.
“We will have to keep fighting,” Costa Rica coach Jorge Luis Pinto said. “Whatever happens we are willing to fight.”
England had already been eliminated and will go home without a win.
Greece 2, Ivory Coast 1: Georgios Samaras scored an injury-time penalty to send Greece into the second round of the World Cup for the first time, eliminating Ivory Coast in the process.
Samaras was adjudged to have been tripped in the area by substitute Giovanni SiO, and calmly slotted in the spot kick for the win. Ivory Coast would have advanced with a draw.
“This means so much to me, to us ... Tonight we had energy,” Samaras said, dedicating the win to Greeks suffering through financial crisis. “We really hope we can make the people happy back home.”
Colombia 4, Japan 1: James Rodriguez scored and set up two more for Jackson Martinez as Colombia claimed the top spot in Group C and eliminated the Asian champions. Already assured of advancing, Colombia guaranteed fi rst place with its third straight win, setting up a secondround match against Uruguay. Japan finished with a draw and two losses in a disappointing campaign.
Mexico: Soccer governing body FIFA said it won’t punish Mexico after investigating its supporters for using a homophobic termat the World Cup.
Supporters have been regularly chanting a gay slur when the opposition goalkeeper punts the ball upfield. FIFA started an investigation last week, but spokeswoman Delia Disher said the FIFA disciplinary committee decided “that the incident in question is not considered insulting in this specific context.”