Oswaldo Vizcarrondo scored in the 26th minute to lift Venezuela to a 1-0 victory over Bolivia on Tuesday in South American World Cup qualifying.
The victory improved Venezuela to seven points in four matches, the same as regional powerhouses Uruguay and Argentina at the top of the qualifying group. Bolivia has one point in four matches.
Venezuela is the only country in the 10-member South American confederation that has never played in the World Cup final. The victory puts Venezuela in great shape as South Americans take a seven-month break until qualifying resumes in June.
''We had the responsibility to get three points, and we did it,'' Vizcarrondo said. ''We are here to achieve things, working hard and trying to stay cool. The important thing is to keep our heads and finally qualify for the World Cup.''
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Lineups:
Venezuela: Renny Vega, Roberto Rosales, Oswaldo Vizcarrondo, Fernando Amorebieta, Gabriel Cichero, Julio Alvarez (Franklin Lucena, 73), Tomas Rincon, Cesar Gonzalez (Frank Feltscher, 62), Juan Arango, Jose Salomon Rondon, Giancarlo Maldonado (Rolf Feltscher, 79).
Bolivia: Carlos Arias, Cristian Vargas, Ronald Raldes, Ronald Rivero, Luis Gutierrez, Jose Chavez, Ronald Segovia (Jhasmani Campos, 60), Jaime Robles, Rudy Cardozo (Augusto Andaveris, 78), Pablo Escobar (Juan Carlos Arce, 60), Marcelo Martins.
