Ecuador stun Brazil, Argentina win again

South American minnows Ecuador handed Brazil their third and most humiliating defeat so far in the World Cup qualifiers on Wednesday, while Argentina and Paraguay won again.

Striker Agustin Delgado scored his fifth goal of the competition and possibly the most important in his country's soccer history as Ecuador won 1-0 at high altitude in Quito.

It was the first time the team from the small Andean nation have beaten the four-time world champions in 22 attempts, previous results including defeats of 9-1, 9-2 and 7-1.

Argentina hammered Venezuela 5-0 in Buenos Aires on a night when midfielder Diego Simeone became the first player to make 100 full international appearances for them.

Across the River Plate in Montevideo, Paraguay won 1-0 away to Uruguay and left the losers in danger of missing out on the World Cup for a third successive time.

Brazil remain third in the single South American group with 20 points from 11 games and, with four teams qualifying automatically for the World Cup and a fifth playing off against the Oceania winners, are still in little danger of failing to qualify.

HARD TO STOMACH

It was the sheer embarrassment of losing to a country with no real tradition in the sport which hurt Brazilians.

"I have to say this is hard to stomach," said a Brazilian television commentator as Ecuador passed the ball around to cries of "Ole" late in the second half.

"I think I preferred the old days," he added, referring to the pre-1980 period when Brazil routinely hammered six and seven goals past smaller South American rivals.

While Brazil have played at every World Cup since the competition began in 1930, Ecuador have taken part in none. Wednesday's win, however, put them fourth with 19 points and an excellent chance of at last breaking their luck.

The goal came four minutes into the second half when Delgado slid the ball home from close range after Ivan Kaviedes, who missed two excellent first-half chances, weaved through the Brazilian defense and slipped the ball to him.

Ecuador, helped by the thin air of Quito, held on thanks to a brilliant last-minute double save by goalkeeper Jose Cevallos, who parried a close-range header from Romario and then stopped the rebound as well.

Romario missed two excellent chances while Barcelona midfielder Rivaldo was substituted halfway through the second half as Brazil's big names struggled at high altitude.

The final whistle set off wild celebrations with Ecuador's Colombian coach Hernan Dario Gomez calling the win the high point of his career. "I didn't know whether to laugh or cry," he said.

His counterpart Emerson Leao was left fishing for explanations as he was grilled by the Brazilian media.

CANNON FODDER

Argentina's win against a Venezuela team which even Caracas daily El Universal described as cannon fodder took them to 28 points.

Hernan Crespo, Juan Pablo Sorin, Juan Sebastian Veron, Marcelo Gallardo and Walter Samuel scored the goals, but the night belonged to Simeone.

One of the game's toughest competitors, he was given the captain's armband he held earlier in his career for a night on which he also celebrated his 31st birthday. He may have wanted more demanding opponents and the lightweight Venezuelans failed to bring out his best.

Paraguay are five points behind Argentina after sneaking a breakway goal through Guido Alvarenga to beat Uruguay in Montevideo. Paraguay absorbed an hour of Uruguayan pressure in a rough, fiery match.

Spanish referee Jose Garcia Aranda had enormous difficulty controlling the game and the unique passions of a South American World Cup qualifier.

Uruguay are sixth with 15 points, three behind Colombia who beat Bolivia 2-0 on Tuesday, thanks to two goals from Juan Pablo Angel.

With seven matches each to play, Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil appear set to qualify, with Ecuador, Colombia and Uruguay scrapping for the other berths.

Peru, who are seventh with 11 points, remain rank outsiders despite beating Chile 3-1 on Tuesday.