MEXICO CITY, 26 July 2003 — Two goalkeeping blunders from Ricardo Gonzalez gifted a below-par Mexico a 2-0 victory over Costa Rica on Thursday earning them a CONCACAF Gold Cup final berth against Brazil.

Gonzalez’s first error came when he misjudged a deep cross from Mexican captain Rafael Marquez in the 19th minute and flapped the ball into his own net.

Marquez, who earlier this month joined Catalan club Barcelona from French first division side Monaco, said his goal was one of the weirdest he had ever scored.

“I wanted to put over a center and I surprised him and also surprised myself,” said Marquez, who sat out the second half on the bench with an ice pack over his left knee after picking up a slight injury.

The Costa Rican keeper compounded the mistake by spilling a low-driven free kick by Rafael Garcia that allowed striker Jared Borgetti to tap in the rebound with Gonzalez floundering on the floor, giving Mexico a 2-0 lead in the 28th minute.

It was an advantage the Mexican’s rarely looked like losing. The bizarre first goal took the wind out of Costa Rica who until then had created the better chances.

In a five-minute spell, the busy Walter Centeno hit the bar with a long range shot with Mexican goalkeeper Oswaldo Sanchez beaten. Centeno, who plays with AEK Athens, then drove another shot just wide of the right hand post. Costa Rican striker Winston Parks whipped a right foot shot across the Mexican goal that Sanchez palmed wide.

A scrappy second half, toward the end played in torrential rain, saw Costa Rica come back into the match, especially with the inclusion of the striker Rolando Fonseca. But there were still few clear chances on goal.

In injury time, Fonseca had Costa Rica’s best chance to pull a goal back but his low shot was again well saved by Sanchez, who has yet to allow in a goal in Mexico’s four matches to date in the tournament.

Midfielder Pavel Pardo, who slipped on the captain’s armband for the second half, was pleased to reach the final.

‘Chelski’ Clinch Easy 4-1 Win Over Malaysia in Asia Cup

In Kuala Lumpur, Chelsea’s big guns led the Blues to their first victory under new owner Roman Abramovich yesterday, with the 4-1 victory over the Malaysian national team offering the Russian billionaire a taste of the success he hopes his money could bring this season.

England midfielder Frank Lampard scored the first goal in the 36th minute, pouncing on a delicate pass from striker Carlton Cole to easily beat Malaysian keeper Azmin Azram.

But Malaysia equalized three minutes later when striker Hairuddin Omar headed past Marco Ambrosio.

Ranieri ignited the game in the 63rd minute when he brought on Chelsea’s 17-million-pound signing, Irish winger Damien Duff, as well as the lethal striking combinaton of Eidur Gudjohnsen and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.

The move brought immediate success with Duff feeding the ball to Hasselbaink, who drove in a powerful left foot strike to make the score 2-1 in the 70th minute.

Another Duff cross 12 minutes later set Gudjohnsen up for an easy header, signalling an end to hopes by the 21,000 home fans at the National Stadium that their team would be able to salvage a draw.

Nineteen-year-old fullback Glen Johnson, who arrived from relegated West Ham for six million pounds ($9.66 million) at the start of Chelsea’s preseason spending spree, capped the night with another uncontested header to make the score 4-1 in the 85th minute. Johnson came on in the 29th minute for his first game time for Chelsea after fellow teenager Robert Huth was forced from the field with a gashed forehead.

Lechantre Signs to Coach Al-Ahli

In Riyadh, French coach Pierre Lechantre on Thursday signed a $500,000 contract to take charge of Saudi Arabia’s soccer club Al-Ahli for next season.

Lechantre, who coached the Qatar national team for two years before being replaced by countryman Philippe Troussier, said he had turned down offers from the national sides of Algeria and Mali, to work in the Kingdom.

“I am confident and determined in my capacity as a coach to serve the Saudi team,” said Lechantre who took Cameroon to Olympic gold in Sydney in 2000 as well as the African Nations Cup.

Beckham Keeps Cool in First Practice With Real

In Kunming, China, England captain David Beckham made his long-anticipated debut on the training pitch with Real Madrid in southwestern China yesterday.

All eyes were on Beckham during a light 90-minute workout which came on the heels of the team’s long flight to Kunming, where Real are training for a week before four promotional friendlies in Asia.

Around 200 reporters and 200 selected local fans in Real shirts — all employees of the state-owned tobacco company hosting the squad — were keen to see how the larger-than-life celebrity would fit into Real’s constellation of stars. Beckham was low key and businesslike, largely keeping quiet during stretches and trailing near the back during a warm-up jog. Chinese followers hooted and hollered at almost his every move in drills, though Portuguese forward Luis Figo’s playful antics snatched the spotlight from Beckham at several points.