Uruguay times 'revenge' to minute
By Robert Lusetich
October 24, 2005
URUGUAY will push back the kick-off of the opening match of the World Cup qualifiers against Australia, in an attempt to force the Socceroos to miss their flight to Sydney from Montevideo.
In yet another example of a rapidly deteriorating relationship between the ruling bodies of the two countries, Uruguayan sources confirmed yesterday that the kick-off for the November 12 match at Estadio Centenario in the Uruguayan capital would be changed to 9pm, five hours later than it had been scheduled.
The El Observador newspaper in Montevideo yesterday confirmed the shift, under the headline Guerra Fria (Cold War).
The newspaper quoted unnamed sources within the Uruguayan Football Association and Tenfield, which owns the television rights to soccer in Uruguay, as saying the reason for the change was to "hinder the return of the Australians".
The Uruguayan FA has chartered a flight for its team which will leave immediately after the game.
The Socceroos are now believed to be looking at the possibility of securing their own charter flight, as they could not catch a commercial flight out of South America until late the following day, which would leave them barely two days to prepare for the return leg, on November 16 at Telstra Stadium.
Uruguayan sources told The Australian that the move was a tit-for-tat response to Socceroos coach Guus Hiddink's refusal to bring forward by one day the opening leg.
Uruguay boss Jorge Fossati had wanted the Friday kick-off - and FIFA was ready to approve it - because he wanted to give his squad an extra day to get over jet-lag.
Hiddink is believed to have thought that would be a greater advantage for Uruguay than Australia, so he vetoed the date change.
A Football Federation Australia (FFA) spokesman said yesterday there was little the Socceroos could do as the host nation for each leg could schedule its match at whatever time it wished.
This is the latest case of bad blood between the two ruling bodies that stretches back to the Australians' arrival in Montevideo for the 2001 World Cup qualifier.
As revealed exclusively in The Australian this month, the Socceroos were spat at and jostled by thugs paid by a man associated with Tenfield, the omnipotent media company which exerts enormous influence on the sport in Uruguay.
Tenfield's owner, Francisco 'Paco' Casal, is also the agent for almost all of the Uruguayan players and is commonly referred to as Uruguayan football's "padrino".
The FFA has demanded tight security for the Socceroos' return to Uruguay.
The team will train in Argentina until the day before the game to avoid the siege mentality - the players were virtual prisoners in their hotel four years ago.
After flying to South America with a 1-0 lead from the first leg in Melbourne, the Socceroos lost the Montevideo game 3-0 to see their World Cup hopes disappear for another four years.
The chief executive of FFA, John O'Neill, raised the ire of ordinary Uruguayans, most of whom were appalled by the actions of the louts at the airport, by threatening to have the Socceroos walk from the pitch if they were treated badly and saying that Uruguayan culture regarded opposing teams as "fair game".
A number of reports in Uruguay, meanwhile, alleged that FFA deliberately sought to deprive Uruguayans living in Australia the opportunity to buy tickets for the return leg.
The Socceroos received some good news yesterday after Harry Kewell made his first starting appearance for Liverpool this season, in the Reds' 2-0 loss to Fulham early yesterday (AEST).
Kewell was below his best but stayed on the field for 75 minutes, the most positive sign yet that he will be fit for the World Cup qualifiers.
Midfielder Vince Grella pushed his case for a place in the Socceroos' side with a goal for Parma in its Serie A 4-1 loss to Fiorentina.
- Additional reporting by Ray Gatt
The Australian
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