Guatemala subdue Barbados

Guatemala subdue Barbados
REUTERS

QUETZALTENANGO, (GUATEMALA), JULY 23: Guatemala beat Barbados 2-0 on Saturday in a World Cup qualifier dominated by the Central American team.

Guatemala went ahead after two minutes when Carlos Ruiz, who scored in last week's 1-1 draw with the United States, hammered in a shot from outside the penalty area.

In the 83rd minute, Fredy Garcia curved in an impressive free-kick from near the corner spot to seal the points in the CONCACAF region semi-final stage Group E match.

Guatemala clearly held the edge and Barbados goalkeeper Horace Stoute, the hero of last Sunday's shock win over Costa Rica, saved the small Caribbean Nation's team from humiliation with a string of fine saves.

The game was played in a 4,000-capacity stadium at over 2,000 metres' altitude, which put Barbados at a serious disadvantage.

Medical assistants administered oxygen to the visiting team throughout the match, and after the game two Barbados players were carried off on stretchers reportedly suffering from the effects of altitude.

The win gave Guatemala four points and put them top of the group, from which the top two teams progress to the final round of the CONCACAF qualifiers. Barbados have three points from two games.

Costa Rica, who have no points, and the United States, who have one, meet in San Jose on Sunday.