Spain powers past Slovakia in Cup playoff
Swiss, Czechs also win openers
Spain, the Czech Republic, Switzerland and Uruguay took a big step toward qualifying for next year’s World Cup finals by winning playoff games yesterday.
Spain, which hasn’t lost any of its 17 games under coach Luis Aragones, was the biggest winner, getting three goals from Luis Garcia in a 5- 1 rout of Slovakia in Madrid.
Vladimir Smicer scored the lone goal in the Czech Republic’s 1-0 victory over Norway, while the Swiss topped 2002 semifinalist Turkey 2-0 and Uruguay edged Australia 1- 0 — all in the first game of two- game playoff series. Fernando Torres also scored for Spain by converting a penalty, and substitute Fernando Morientes added the fifth goal.
Spain is trying to qualify for the World Cup finals for the eighth straight time.
Although Spain is one of soccer’s traditional powerhouses, the team has a poor record in international championships. The Spanish won the 1964 European Championship but have not been past the quarter- finals of the World Cup since 1950.
Slovakia, which is trying to get there for the first time since the breakup of Czechoslovakia, finished the match with 10 men after Marian Had was sent off for protesting. Slovakia coach Dusan Galis was also red carded. The Czech Republic never has qualified for the World Cup finals, although Czechoslovakia reached the quarter-finals in 1990 — three years before the nation split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Smicer, left unmarked in front of the net, beat goalie Thomas Myhre from eight yards out. Karel Poborsky set up the goal with a cross from the right side in the game in Oslo, Norway.
“ We came here to try to win or at least score and we managed to fulfill both,” Smicer said. “ Now we have to take a rest and prepare for the second leg.’’
Philippe Senderos and Valon Behrami scored a goal each for Switzerland. Senderos scored first with a glancing header off a free kick from Ludovic Magnin in the 40th minute, and Behrami added an insurance goal in the 86th minute at the Stade de Suisse in Bern.
Dario Rodriguez scored the lone goal for two-time World Cup champion Uruguay in the 35th minute at Montevideo, Uruguay. Four years ago, Australia won 1- 0 at home in the first leg but lost 3- 0 in Uruguay.
Five spots remain open for the 32- team showcase in Germany. In the other playoff, Bahrain and Trinidad and Tobago played to a 1- 1 tie in Port of Spain, Trinidad. The second legs are Wednesday.
In exhibition games, the U. S. tied Scotland 1- 1; England beat Argentina 3- 2; Brazil routed the United Arab Emirates 8- 0; Italy topped the Netherlands 3- 1; and Germany tied France 0-0. In other friendlies, it was: South Korea 2, Sweden 2; Bulgaria 6, Georgia 2; Senegal 3, South Africa 2; Macedonia 2, Liechtenstein 1; Ivory Coast 2, Romania 1 and Portugal 2, Croatia 0.