Paraguay's Cardozo inconsolable over penalty miss

Johannesburg: Paraguay forward Oscar Cardozo crumpled to the ground in tears at the final whistle, his missed penalty in his country's first World Cup quarterfinal had enabled Spain to advance after scoring a late goal.

Cardozo had the opportunity to give Paraguay the lead in the 59th minute at Ellis Park, but his spot kick was saved by goalkeeper Iker Casillas and Spain striker David Villa scored with seven minutes remaining to seal a 1-0 win on Saturday.

The Paraguay forward was inconsolable as his teammates and staff members tried in vain to comfort him.

"I just feel a bit guilty personally because of the missed penalty," Cardozo said. "If I had scored it could have been different."

Within two minutes of Cardozo's miss, Spain was awarded a penalty of its own. As the referee pointed to the spot, Cardozo fell to his knees in the center circle and had to be lifted to his feet by forward Nelson Valdez.

"I tried to tell him not to lose hope," Valdez said. "I told him that the game wasn't over yet and he would get other chances."

Cardozo hung his head as Xabi Alonso converted the penalty, but was relieved to see the referee order the kick to be retaken because some Spanish players had encroached inside the area.

When Justo Villar saved Alonso's second attempt, Cardozo ran to his goalkeeping captain and patted him on the head.

The reprieve was short-lived.

Paraguay's luck ran out when Villa scored from an attack in which the ball struck a post three times before crossing the line.

Substitute Roque Santa Cruz missed a great chance late on for Paraguay to level when Casillas made a quality block.

At fulltime, Cardozo slumped to the turf before rising and pulling his shirt over his head. Player after player, including Casillas and others from Spain, went to offer sympathy as he wandered round the pitch with a shocked expression on his face.

"Paraguay played a good game, we just didn't take advantage of the chances we had," a red-eyed Cardozo said. "I missed a penalty and I still can't believe it. That's football though, and you've just got to try and move forward."

Paraguay coach Gerardo Martino said Cardozo would need strength to recover from his disappointment.

"This is the history of football," Martino said. "This can happen. It's important for him not to feel bad."

Santa Cruz also offered words of encouragement.

"Nobody's going to reproach him for anything," he said. "Even the best players miss penalties."