Soccer Roundup: Barcelona Waltzes Into Final In Japan

Barcelona of Spain beat Mexico’s Club América by 4-0 yesterday to reach the final of the Club World Cup.

Ronaldinho scored a goal Thursday as Barcelona defeated Club América of Mexico.

Eidur Gudjohnsen, Gabriel Márquez, Ronaldinho and Deco scored in a steady rain in Yokohoma, Japan.

Barcelona will play Brazil’s Internacional in Sunday’s final. The tournament brings together the six continental club champions. Internacional beat Egypt’s Al Ahly, 2-1, on Wednesday in the other semifinal.

Gudjohnsen scored first, tucking the ball under goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa to cap a four-man passing combination that included a back-heeled pass from Ronaldinho. Márquez made it 2-0 before halftime, heading in Deco’s corner.

Ronaldinho scored into the roof of the net from 10 yards out in the 65th minute after Ochoa had parried a shot. Ronaldinho, the Brazilian playmaker, who will face a team from his hometown of Porto Alegre in the final, danced a samba to celebrate.

Claudio López, the 32-year-old Argentine striker, came close to scoring for América in the opening minutes.

He beat Barcelona’s offside trap only to be foiled by goalkeeper Victor Valdes, who scampered out to snatch the ball as López was preparing to shoot.

Valdes also tipped out a shot in the closing minutes before Deco blasted in the fourth goal from 25 yards.

FIELD SET FOR KNOCKOUT ROUND Bayer Leverkusen of Germany, Livorno of Italy, Osasuna of Spain, Lens of France and Sporting Braga of Portugal yesterday captured the last five spots in the knockout round of the UEFA Cup.

Leverkusen needed late goals to knock out Turkey’s Besiktas, 2-1, while Livorno won, 1-0, at Auxerre to eliminate the French club. Osasuna scored a 3-0 victory at group winner Parma, Braga beat Grasshoppers of Switzerland, 2-0, to knock out Slovan Liberec and Lens advanced despite losing, 1-0, at the Dutch club Heerenveen.

The top three in each of eight groups qualified for today’s draw for the knockout round in Nyon, Switzerland, and they will be joined by eight clubs who finished third in their Champions League groups. (AP)

U.S. TO PLAY MEXICO ON FEB. 7 The United States men’s national team will renew its rivalry with Mexico when the teams meet in an international friendly Feb. 7 in Phoenix. It will be the first match for the American team under the interim coach Bob Bradley, who has taken over for Bruce Arena.

“I’m excited to be a part of my first game against Mexico,” Bradley said in a statement from US Soccer. “There is a great history to the rivalry, and I know it is always a special game for the players and the fans. It is a great opportunity to see how our players respond against a challenging opponent.”

The United States has a 6-0-1 record at home against Mexico since 2000, which does not include a second-round victory at the 2002 World Cup in South Korea.

WASHINGTON GETS M.L.S. CUP Major League Soccer’s championship game will return to Washington and Robert F. Kennedy Stadium for the third time in the league’s 12-year history. The match will be played Nov. 18 and start at noon Eastern.

M.L.S. Cup was played in Washington in 1997, when 57,431 saw D.C. United win its second straight league title; and in 2000, when there were 39,159 in attendance as Kansas City defeated Chicago.

In recent years, the league has played its showcase match at one of its new stadiums. This year, Colorado is the only club with a new building, but the early starting time, to accommodate ABC’s schedule, would have meant starting the match at 10 a.m. outside Denver. It is more likely that the Rapids will play host to the league’s midsummer all-star game.

RED BULLS’ HOME OPENER The Red Bulls will open the home part of the 2007 season, which will be the club’s final year at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., against F.C. Dallas on April 15, a Sunday afternoon. The team will open its M.L.S. season at Columbus on April 7.

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