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| Team | Goals For | Goals For Average | Matches Played |
 Burkina Faso | 21 | 2.3 | 9 |
 Côte d'Ivoire | 20 | 2.2 | 9 |
 Mali | 17 | 1.9 | 9 |
 Ghana | 16 | 1.8 | 9 |
| Team | Goals For | Goal For Average | Matches Played |
 El Salvador | 36 | 2.4 | 15 |
 Costa Rica | 34 | 2.6 | 13 |
 USA | 33 | 2.5 | 13 |
 Mexico | 24 | 1.8 | 13 |
| Team | GF | GFA | MP |
 England | 26 | 3.7 | 7 |
 Germany | 18 | 3.0 | 6 |
 Bosnia-Herzegovina | 18 | 3.0 | 6 |
 Poland | 18 | 3.0 | 6 |
Wellington's Westpac Stadium has been selected as the host venue for New Zealand's World Cup play-off against Saudi Arabia or Bahrain, announced New Zealand Football (NZF).
North Harbour Stadium and Waikato Stadium also tendered bids to stage the 14 Nov match but Wellington won out because of its bigger capacity.
"With a match of this magnitude we need to give ourselves the best possible chance of qualifying," NZF chief executive Michael Glading said in a statement. "If players feel more comfortable in one venue and we can get an extra 8000 fans playing their part, that could just be the edge needed to realise the dream of reaching the World Cup again."
Saudi Arabia and Bahrain play each other home and away in September with the winner to host New Zealand on 10 Oct before the return leg in Wellington. New Zealand have qualified for the FIFA World Cup™ once, in 1982, but advanced to the play-offs this time after winning the Oceania qualifying division. "This fixture is easily the most important football match ever played in New Zealand," Glading said.
It is one of the many tragedies of the apartheid era in South Africa that footballers from the country were denied a chance to perform on the international stage.
Generations of stars never got the opportunity to test their mettle in competitions like the FIFA World Cup™ and the CAF Africa Cup of Nations because of the policy of separation practiced by the white minority regime.
South Africa did not compete in a FIFA World Cup or a Cup of Nations qualifying campaign until 1992, which means that for some 60 years their footballers stood on the sidelines and watched while the rest of the world got on with the business of competition.
Yet there were South Africans who did manage to taste international football, but had to represent other countries to compete at that level.
Hodgson the hero
The first real superstar of South African football was Gordon Hodgson, who played in the country's first-ever international against Northern Ireland in Belfast in 1924.
He later went on to play for Liverpool and England and his record of 17 hat-tricks for Liverpool is yet to be broken.
After World War Two, a flurry of South African footballers left to play in England, almost all of them white, who were members of the racially-segregated national side.
Bill Perry played for England and scored the winning goal in the famous 'Matthews' FA Cup final of 1953 when Blackpool came from behind to beat Bolton Wanderers 4-3.
John Hewie was the first South African to play in a FIFA World Cup. Thanks to his ancestry, he was picked to play for Scotland in Sweden in 1958.
The first black footballers to leave South Africa were Darius Dhlomo and Steve Mokone, who made a major impression at Heracles Almelo in the Netherlands. They were major heroes for the black population, who because of apartheid had few role models in their society.
Later David Julius left South Africa because of apartheid and played at Sporting Lisbon. As 'David Juliao', he was capped by Portugal.
South African Albert Johanneson was the first black player to play in a FA Cup final for Leeds United in 1965.
Colin Viljoen and Brian Stein, whose father was an anti-apartheid activist and had to flee the regime, both played later for England at a time when there was no South African national side to represent.
Roy Wegerle, who competed for the likes of Chelsea, QPR and Luton Town in England's top flight, became an American citizen through his wife and competed at the 1994 and 1998 FIFA World Cup finals. His decision to take up the opportunity to play for the USA came just before South Africa's re-admission into international football.
The forgotten footballers
Names like Pule 'Ace' Ntsoelengoe, Kaizer Motaung and Jomo Sono are legendary in South Africa, but their impact on the international scene is negligible.
Had they, however, been exposed to international audiences and competition, who knows how different their futures and profiles might have been.
Ntsoelengoe, who died last year at the age of 50, is generally regarded as the best ever South African footballer. His career alternated between the colours of Kaizer Chiefs and clubs in the North American Soccer League. Two years ago he was inducted into the US Soccer Hall of Fame.
In the late 1960s and throughout the 70s, the NASL in the USA and Canada was only the outlet for top South African talent and Ntsoelengoe was one of many who crossed the Atlantic Ocean to play in the league.
Sono was an understudy to Pele for New York Cosmos and later helped Toronto Blizzard to win the NASL title.
Motaung was the first South African to go the USA and was named Rookie of the Year in 1968. He later came home and started a new club called Kaizer Chiefs, today the country's best supported team.
Since the end of apartheid, South African footballers have had the same opportunities as the rest of the world and players like Lucas Radebe, Benni McCarthy and Steven Pienaar have been able to compete at the highest level.
Indeed, McCarthy is the only South African international to have won a UEFA Champions League medal, with FC Porto in 2004.
It is a very special day tomorrow, when it will be exactly one year to kick-off of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ South Africa, the very first on African soil. The second ticketing phase on a first come, first serve basis will continue until 16 November.
As of today (with four out of 32 teams qualified, in addition to the hosts South Africa) there have been a total of 630,021 tickets in 188 different countries/territories sold. Nearly half of those total orders have been submitted by South Africans (301,601). Outside of South Africa, supporters from the USA have purchased the largest number of tickets (73,441), followed by the United Kingdom (42,907), Germany (30,880) and Australia (15,038). Reigning champions Italy have so far received 6,063 ticket orders, Brazil 5,777 and from France 5,106 tickets have been so far sold.
FIFA Confederations Cup: Ticketing centres will be open until last minute
The final countdown is on: With only four days to the first match of the FIFA Confederations Cup 2009 on 14 June - with the home team South Africa facing Iraq at Ellis Park - there have been already more than 70 % (this corresponds to a figure of 438,000) sold of the total of tickets available. To cater for the expected last-minute surge of demand, tickets can be purchased (even on match days) at:
The ticket centres will be open from 9am-6pm, seven days a week.
To further assist football fans, a Ticketing Call Centre has been established and fans can call 0832010010 to book their seat at the FIFA Confederations Cup. Please be aware, that there will be no ticket sales at the four stadiums.
What's plastic, a metre long, brightly coloured and sounds like an elephant? It's the vuvuzela, the noise-making trumpet of South African football fans, and it's come to symbolise the sport in the country.
It's an instrument, but not always a musical one. Describing the atmosphere in a stadium packed with thousands of fans blowing their vuvuzelas is difficult. Up close it's an elephant, sure, but en masse the sound is more like a massive swarm of very angry bees.
And when there's action near the goal mouth, those bees go really crazy.
To get that sound out requires lip flexibility and lung strength - in short, a fair amount of technique. So be sure to get in some practice before attending a South African football match, or you the sound you produce may cause some amusement in the seats around you!
Vuvuzela supplier Boogieblast offers this advice: "Put your lips inside the mouthpiece and almost make a 'farting' sound. Relax your cheeks and let your lips vibrate inside the mouthpiece. As soon as you get that trumpeting sound, blow harder until you reach a ridiculously loud 'boogying blast'.
The ancestor of the vuvuzela is said to be the kudu horn - ixilongo in isiXhosa, mhalamhala in Tshivenda - blown to summon African villagers to meetings. Later versions were made of tin.
The trumpet became so popular at football matches in the late 1990s that a company, Masincedane Sport, was formed in 2001 to mass-produce it. Made of plastic, they come in a variety of colours - black or white for fans of Orlando Pirates, yellow for Kaizer Chiefs, and so on - with little drawings on the side warning against blowing in the ear!
There's uncertainty on the origin of the word "vuvuzela". Some say it comes from the isiZulu for - wait for it - "making noise". Others say it's from township slang related to the word "shower", because it "showers people with music" - or, more prosaically, looks a little like a shower head.
The announcement, on 15 May 2004, that South Africa would host the 2010 Fifa World Cup gave the vuvuzela a huge boost, to say the least - some 20 000 were sold on the day by enterprising street vendors.
It's a noisy thing, so there's no surprise some don't like it. Journalist Jon Qwelane once quipped that he had taken to watching football matches at home - with the volume turned low - because of what he described as "an instrument of hell".
Cape Town-based music educator Pedro Espi-Sanchis has a different view, however: to him the vuvuzela is a rousing instrument that can, when tuned correctly, play in an orchestra as easily as a flute, violin or cello.
Espi-Sanchis says the vuvuzela is a "proudly South African instrument" with roots deep in local traditional music. He was introduced to it over 30 years ago by renowned South African ethnomusicologist Andrew Tracey.
A fan of football himself, Espi-Sanchis came up with the idea of a vuvuzela orchestra after realising that crowds at a match could coordinate their trumpeting to make music. "I heard the vuvuzelas at soccer games and the sound was not musical at all," he says. "Vuvuzelas need to play rhythms together to really show their power."
In 2006 Espi-Sanchis and Thandi Swartbooi, head of the South African traditional music group Woman Unite, launched a vuvuzela orchestra as part of the Cape Town-based uMoya Music organisation.
Made up of a core group of seven people, with Espi-Sanchis as conductor and soloist on the lekgodilo flute and six musicians each playing a vuvuzela, the orchestra made its first public appearance at the Johannesburg Carnival in December 2006.
Their first performance at a soccer match was at the Nelson Mandela Challenge match at Ellis Park stadium in November 2007, when Bafana Bafana took on the USA.
Espi-Sanchis found an excellent local football fan base to accompany the vuvuzela orchestra. Supporters of Bloemfontein Celtic football club, based in the Free State, "form one of the best fan bases in South African soccer," he says. "In November [2007], we taught 60 of these fans to play seven songs in just five days.
"Each of our six musicians was responsible for 10 fans, and they taught them to play their parts. Celtic fans also taught us some of their wonderful songs, and together we supported Bafana Bafana at the Mandela Challenge by singing and dancing with the vuvuzela orchestra."
"Now we want to bring up a fan base to support our national team," says Espi-Sanchis. "The vuvuzela music can be learnt very quickly ... we want to use the Celtic supporters as models for a national fan base."
Whether or not Espi-Sanchis' ambitions are realised, vuvezalas are bound to play an integral part in South Africa's 2010 celebrations, and World Cup visitors are sure to go home with a vuvuzela or two tucked in their luggage - and a little ringing in their ears ...
SAinfo reporter and MediaClubSouthAfrica.com
After Korea Republic, Japan and Australia booked their places at the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ at the weekend, the results on 10 June mean competition for the remaining automatic qualifying spot and two third-place berths should go down to the wire.
Needing a point away against Australia to seal third place in Group A, Bahrain failed to achieve their goal, slumping to a 2-0 defeat. This result leaves the Gulf side needing a draw from their decisive final match at home against Uzbekistan in a week's time.
Meanwhile, there will be no such opportunities for Qatar, who despite bravely holding hosts Japan to a 1-1 draw in their final game, were eliminated after taking only six points from eight qualifiers. Following the lead of the United Arab Emirates, the Qataris became the second side to bow out in the Asian Zone's final qualifying round.
Over Group B, Saudi Arabia's goalless draw in Korea Republic kept them level on 11 points with Korea DPR, though the latter are still ahead on goal difference. Iran, for their part, notched their first win in four games with a narrow home defeat of UAE to keep their faint hopes of reaching South Africa 2010 alive.
Matchday 9 results:
10 June 2009
Group A: Japan 1-1 Qatar; Australia 2-0 Bahrain
Group B: Iran 1-0 United Arab Emirates; Korea Republic 0-0 Saudi Arabia
The big game
Iran 1-0 United Arab Emirates
Ali Karimi (53')
With Iran coach Afshin Ghotbi and his charges desperate to take all three points, Ali Karimi's solitary strike was as crucial as it was spectacular. After a disappointing first half, during which the home side struggled to pierce the visitors' rearguard, eight minutes into the second period former Bayern Munich midfielder Karimi picked up an Andranik Teymourian pass outside area before outwitting a slew of defenders and sliding a left-footed shot past UAE goalkeeper Majed Naser. The win puts the Iranians hot on the heels of Group B rivals Saudi Arabia and Korea DPR, while victory for Ghotbi's side away to Korea Republic in their final encounter would ensure they finish no lower than third.
The surprise
Japan 1-1 Qatar
Ahmed Ali Albinali (2' OG), Ali Yahya (53' PEN)
Qatar went into their final game against Japan needing all three points and plenty of goals to give them a glimmer of hope of a third-place berth in Group A. Coach Bruno Metsu's charges were hit by an early own goal, Ahmed Ali Albinali turning Atsuto Uchida's cross into his own net after only two minutes, but battled back for a spirited draw. It was Ali Yahya who grabbed the equaliser from the penalty spot eight minutes into the second half, but the single point attained meant they now have no chance of overtaking third-placed Bahrain.
The other games
Australia 2-0 Bahrain
Mile Sterjovski (55'), David Carney (88')
With Australia already qualified and Bahrain needing just a point, the game at Sydney began slowly and with few clear-cut chances. The visitors had looked the better side after the interval only for the Socceroos to take the lead when Mile Sterjovski capitalised on a defensive error. And after Bahrain had squandered two decent chances to get back on level terms, Aussie midfielder David Carney put the game beyond any doubt with two minutes remaining by steering Jason Culina's bicycle kick into the back of the net.
Korea Republic 0-0 Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia coach Jose Peseiro must be a relieved man after seeing his side survive a second-half onslaught from Korea Republic to pick up a point at Seoul. The visitors had the lion's share of possession in the first half but the tables were well and truly turned after the break. Despite going down to ten men late on after Ahmeed Ateef's dismissal for a second yellow card, the Saudis very nearly snatched victory with a last-gasp header from Naif Hazazi which flew just over. The draw means the Saudis must win their final game against Korea DPR in Riyadh, with their east Asian opponents needing just a point to go through.
The player
Iran's gifted 30-year-old Karimi proved that when he finds his best form, so do Iran. Author of an inspirational display in his previous outing for Team Melli against Korea DPR, he further cemented his place in coach Ghotbi's heart with a stunning winner against UAE.
The stat
200 - Karimi's decisive strike was Iran's 200th in 36 years of FIFA World Cup qualifying action. The goal also made Iran the first Asian Zone nation to hit the double-century mark.
What they said
"Although they had already qualified for the World Cup, South Korea showed their excellent mentality and made life hard for us. I hope the two teams will meet again in South Africa," Saudi Arabia coach Jose Peseiro.
Wayne Rooney and Jermain Defoe both scored twice as England gave 58,000 fans, who refused to be beaten by a London travel nightmare, ample reward for their defiance with their biggest win in a competitive game since 1999.
After hitting their part-time opponents for six at Wembley, just as they did against Luxembourg a decade ago, the Three Lions know a win against Croatia on 9 September will seal a place at next year's 201 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ with two games to spare.
And if England make it, Fabio Capello will want Rooney in the same form as he has showed this season, his latest brace enough for him to streak clear in the FIFA World Cup qualifying sharp-shooters table with eight goals.
Frank Lampard's effort was sandwiched in between and half-time substitute Defoe scored twice in as many minutes before Peter Crouch netted his 14th goal in 16 international starts to take England's overall tally to 26.
While Defoe could be particularly pleased with his cameo, Rooney was the name on supporters lips as they began a journey home somewhat more testing than anything Andorra provided for their team.
In a bid to get the most out of Rooney, Capello came up with a rather simplistic hint for the Manchester United striker, get in front of the goal While it would be slightly silly to offer Sir Alex Ferguson any advice, given the wider role he was given at Old Trafford, Capello's way is better.
Certainly the statistics, eight goals in seven qualifiers compared to 12 in an entire Premier League season, seem to bear that theory out. And, with possibly both Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo heading out of the Red Devils camp this summer, Ferguson might have to rejig his forward line anyway.
It must have been particularly gratifying for the Italian to see Rooney drill home a couple of close-range efforts before the interval as England disposed of their part-time opponents with the minimum of fuss.
Indeed, there seems to be a touch of genius about Capello's entire management strategy given England are now consistently delivering performances of such assurity, a bad 35 minutes in Kazakhstan apart, it is difficult to believe they failed to score in the first-half of their last meeting with Andorra in September. There was never any chance of such a stalemate this time around.
Quite conceivably, Rooney could have been celebrating his hat-trick when Glen Johnson picked him out with a deep cross that, unmarked, the forward had little trouble finding the net with.
As they were only at the four minute stage, it just about said it all about the one-sided nature of what passed for a contest. A smart turn onto Steven Gerrard's pass created Rooney's first opening, a deft chip that Koldo Alvarez did well to touch over the bar. The second was a more instinctive header that crashed back off the crossbar after Alvarez had denied Theo Walcott.
Peter Crouch and Gerrard might have scored in a little flurry around the ten minute mark but England were made to wait almost until the half hour before finding the net again, Frank Lampard powerfully drilling home Walcott's cutback.
Johnson was the provider for a momentous goal for Rooney, which allowed him to draw level with Sir Geoff Hurst as England's 12th highest scorer on 24. For the record, Rooney also equalled Gary Lineker's record for the most goals in a single international season, ten.
As Rooney notoriously hates missing any football, he might not have taken his interval substitution too well, particularly as the opposition suggested a first England hat-trick was on the cards.
However, in replacing both Rooney and Gerrard with Defoe and Ashley Young, Capello was able to have a decent look at a couple of the fringe players who hope to be on the flight to South Africa in 12 months' time.
Defoe took his chance well scoring twice, Johnson setting up the first to take his number of assists to three, in a similar manner to Rooney before Crouch tapped home after a woeful mistake from Alvarez.
Capello will realise his team must overcome far stiffer tests if they are to emulate the 1966 heroes who got long overdue medals to mark their achievement. But the signs are undeniably positive. And, one senses, in his own understated way, the Italian knows it.
nineteen-year-old Sarah Brandner, partner of German midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger. The fugly Bayern Munich star has had five girlfriends in the past year-and-a-half, but insists that he has found happiness with his latest beau: “she has played a big part in my performances lately,” he insists.
Sarah works for Place Models in Hamburg and first met Schweini at a social event in Munich, where she was accompanied by heavyweight boxer Vladimir Klitschko. The pair met again in Ibiza, and it’s been a blond-haired match made in heaven ever since. “Wir sind sehr verliebt” (”we are so in love”) was the key message from a slushy interview she gave to German newspaper Bild recently.
See Sarah Brandner style here :
The 2009 Confederations Cup in South Africa
The 2010 World Cup promises to be the biggest World Cup ever in terms of Internet coverage - live or otherwise. It may not surpass the novelty of 2002 or the gaiety of 2006 and given that it will be winter in South Africa, it may not be the best event to go see world cup babes, but it will be something special.
The Confederations Cup, on the other hand, will be something of an anti-climax. Like all low-value cup competitions (think Carling Cup or the Club World Cup), there’s a tendency to take South Africa 2009 lightly, almost like a set of friendly matches.
The good thing is that every single team going to this year’s edition of the Confederations Cup has quite a lot to prove, a point to make, which should make for a spirited, if albeit inconsequential, 2 weeks of football.
Here’s a look at the different stadiums the matches will be played in, predictions for the Cup and links to fixtures, squads and how to watch the Cup live (online or on TV):
2009 Confederations Cup Venues
free-state-stadiumFour cities will serve as the venues of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup:
Johannesburg:
Coca-Cola Park (Ellis Park Stadium), 62,567
Pretoria (Tshwane)
Loftus Versfeld Stadium, 50,000
Bloemfontein (Mangaung)
Vodacom Park (Free State Stadium), 48,000
Rustenburg
Royal Bafokeng Stadium, 42,000
Originally, Port Elizabeth’s Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium was also chosen as a venue. However, on 8 July 2008, Port Elizabeth withdrew as a host city because its stadium was deemed unlikely to meet the 30 March 2009 deadline for completion.
All of these stadia are to host matches during the British and Irish Lions tour which will be in progress during this tournament, but a minimum of 9 days has been allowed for pitch recovery between a rugby match and a football match. Expect Wembley-style complaints.
2009 Confederations Cup Predictions
confederations-cup-ballRules: 4 teams in each group, play against the other teams in their group once, top two teams proceed to the semi-finals and so on.
Group A: South Africa, Iraq, New Zealand, Spain
Group B: United States, Italy, Brazil, Egypt
In Group A I expect Spain to win their group comfortably with Iraq coming up as the runners up, although South Africa being the hosts could easily pip them to the post.
In Group B it’s closer on paper but the United States have been a bit clueless under Bob Bradley lately so it’s up to Egypt to cause a few scares and if they can get a win against Italy or Brazil, I think they’ll be a shoe-in for getting to the semis. Italy to win the group though, with Brazil as runner ups.
Semifinal 1: Group A Winner v Group B Runner Up
Semifinal 2: Group B Winner v Group A Runner Up
Predicted Semifinals: Spain v Brazil and Italy v Iraq.
Predicted Final: We’re likely to see Spain take on Italy in the final, and while the European champions will be favourites for such a clash, the World Champions can’t be counted out and I think they could take the game if they can go ahead first in the game.
What are your predictions for the Confederations Cup?
http://soccerlens.com/2009-confederations-cup-south-africa/30361/#ixzz0IDdKpvLW&D
Australia will have a clutch of English Premier League stars back for next week's clash with Japan as they look to top their 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ qualifying group, coach Pim Verbeek said on Thursday.
The Aussies are favourites to claim Group A after a 2-0 win over Bahrain in Sydney on Wednesday and Japan's 1-1 home draw with Qatar, leaving the Blue Samurai two points adrift and needing to beat the Socceroos in Melbourne next Wednesday.
Everton midfielder Tim Cahill was not risked against Bahrain because of injury, while Blackburn enforcer Vince Grella was only used as a second-half substitute. Verbeek said he planned to play his strongest available team against Japan. He is expecting striker Josh Kennedy to recover from injury and skipper Lucas Neill, who has turned down a contract extension offer from West Ham, will return following suspension.
"As far as I know Josh Kennedy and Timmy Cahill will be ready for next week and I didn't want to risk Vince Grella against Bahrain because he was on a yellow card and I needed him for next week," the Dutchman said. "If they are all available I think I will have a very strong team for next week.
"We will have 100,000 people in the stadium next week, who want to see the best available players and we want to be number one in the group so that is why we will try to give everything we have to win that game."
Defenders missing
Verbeek said he will definitely be without defenders Luke Wilkshire and Mark Milligan, who played against Bahrain but have left to play with their clubs in Russia and China this weekend. Senior player Harry Kewell said it was important for Australia, unbeaten in seven final phase qualifying games, to continue winning against regional rivals Japan.
"It's a winning mentality. You want to stick to winning and enjoy that and you want to go into a World Cup winning. You don't want to go in coming off losing matches," the Galatasaray attacker said.
Australia have developed a fierce rivalry with Japan and came away from their away group game in Yokohama last February with a scoreless draw after a disciplined defensive performance.
The Australians scored three times in the final six minutes to overhaul Japan 3-1 in their opening match at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, but the Japanese knocked the Socceroos out in the quarter-finals of the 2007 AFC Asian Cup on penalties in Hanoi. Under Verbeek, Australia have lost two of their 13 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
A brace by Alexis Sanchez helped Chile to defeat ten-man Bolivia 4-0 and move up to second place in South American Zone qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™. Jean Bonsejour opened the scoring a minute before the break with a header from Matias Fernandez' right-wing cross before the hosts added three more goals in a late burst.
Mark Gonzalez doubled the advantage with a precise free-kick in the 74th minute, before Sanchez made it 3-0 four minutes later. Sanchez added his second one minute before half-time and his goal-scoring antics earned him a strong challenge from midfielder Ignacio Garcia who was subsequently sent off.
Marcelo Bielsa's side now have 26 points, one less than leaders Brazil and two ahead Paraguay. Brazil beat Paraguay 2-1 in Recife.
Elsewhere, Venezuela and Uruguay drew 2-2 at Cachamay stadium. Giancarlo Maldonado opened the scoring after eight minutes, but Luis Suarez finally brought the Uruguayans level on the hour mark.
Ten minutes later Atletico Madrid's Diego Forlan put Uruguay ahead, but their lead lasted just three minutes as defender Jose Manuel Rey grabbed a point for Venezuela with a powerful free-kick from 25 meters. The result meant Ecuador moved into fifth place following their 2-0 victory over Argentina. They now have 20 points, two more than Uruguay and three ahead of Venezuela.
Finally, in Medellin hosts Colombia beat bottom-side Peru 1-0 to keep them in with a slim chance of reaching fifth place and the play-off. River Plate striker Radamel Falcao Garcia netted the only goal of the match in the 24th minute.
It was the first competitive Colombian goal in 210 minutes, as well as Falcao's first official goal with the national side. Colombia are three points behind fifth-placed Ecuador.
Brazil and Chile are just a step away from the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ after claiming important wins on Matchday 14 of the South American qualifying competition. The five-time world champions beat Paraguay to cement their position at the top of the group with four matches remaining, while La Roja earned a resounding win over Bolivia to climb into second.
Elsewhere Argentina came off second best to fast-improving Ecuador, Colombia edged out bottom-placed Peru while Venezuela and Uruguay played out an exciting draw.
FIFA.com rounds up the action in Wednesday's five qualifying matches in South America.
Match of the day
Brazil 2-1 Paraguay
Goals: Robinho 40, Nilmar 49 (Brazil); Salvador Cabanas 25 (Paraguay)
Cabanas' fourth goal of the campaign briefly threatened to end Brazil's unbeaten home record in FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Dunga's side were alert to the danger, however, with Robinho restoring parity with a fine strike 15 minutes later and Nilmar completing the comeback just after the interval. The 2-1 win all but assures the Brazilians a place in the finals, a place they can clinch if they beat Argentina in Buenos Aires in their next match. Problems are mounting for La Albirroja, meanwhile. Without a win in four outings, they have now dropped down to third.
Conclusions
The other big winners of the day were Marcelo Bielsa's Chile, who turned in another powerful display to overwhelm Bolivia 4-0 in Santiago. The man they call El Loco looked on with satisfaction as his side eased to victory with goals from Jean Beausejour, Marco Estrada and two from Alexis Sanchez, who paid tribute to Chile legend Marcelo Salas after scoring his second. La Roja have now gone seven games without defeat, an impressive run that has put them on the verge of qualification for the finals.
Another side celebrating an important win were Ecuador, who moved up to fifth in the table after defeating Argentina 2-0 in Quito. El Tri rode their luck at times, particularly in the first half, when Carlos Tevez missed a chance to put the visitors ahead from the penalty spot.
Walter Ayovi's spectacular header after the interval put Sixto Vizuete's men on the road to victory, though, and Pablo Palacios sealed the points to give them a genuine chance of automatic qualification. The Argentinians now lie just one place and two points above them, having gone winless in their last six games on the road and having also failed to win back-to-back matches since the opening two matchdays. Worryingly for them, group leaders Brazil are up next in September.
Radamel Falcao Garcia scored his first goal of the competition to give Colombia three crucial points over Peru, who almost snatched a point in a late rally but remain bottom of the section, their hopes of qualification having long since gone. Victory ensured Los Cafeteros remain seventh in the table, just three points behind Ecuador in the play-off slot.
In the week's other game Venezuela and Uruguay played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in Puerto Ordaz. Goals from in-form duo Luis Suarez and Diego Forlan helped La Celeste into the lead after Giancarlo Maldonado had put the hosts ahead early on. But Juan Manuel Rey's superb free-kick and a miraculous late save by Vinotinto keeper Renny Vega ensured a draw that pleased neither side, with the Uruguayans dropping out of the play-off place and into sixth, and Venezuela slipping down to eighth.
Player of the day
Marcelo Elizaga (ECU)
The Argentina-born goalkeeper was the key man in Ecuador's vital win over La Albiceleste, stopping a first-half penalty from Carlos Tevez and somehow keeping out Fernando Gago's point-blank header after the break.
The stat
7 - The number of consecutive defeats Peru have now suffered in the qualifying competition. The Peruvians went down 1-0 in Colombia on Wednesday and last won on 6 September 2008, when they beat Venezuela by the same scoreline.
What they said
"This a cycle that is producing some very promising results and on top of that we are starting to mature as a team. We're excited but we haven't qualified yet. That's why we remain cautious." Chile coach Marcelo Bielsa refuses to get carried away after his side's big win over Bolivia.
Results:
Ecuador 2-0 Argentina
Colombia 1-0 Peru
Venezuela 2-2 Uruguay
Chile 4-0 Bolivia
Brazil 2-1 Paraguay
Official Schedule
With anticipation growing ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™, the official Match Schedule has been released. To find out where the games will be played in Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, Mangaung/Bloemfontein, Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth, Nelspruit, Polokwane, Rustenburg, Tshwane/Pretoria between 11 June and 11 July 2010.
2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ Match Schedule Download »
