体坛英语新闻：Internacional eliminated from state tournament

RIO DE JANEIRO, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Suffering another disappointing result, Internacional were eliminated from the semifinals of the first half of the Rio Grande do Sul state championship on Saturday.

After a 1-1 draw during regulation, Internacional failed to execute during penalty kicks, resulting in their elimination at the hands of Cruzeiro-RG.

Internacional scored the game's first goal in the 52nd minute. Chasing down a deep long pass, Ricardo Goulart dominated the ball and slid it under an on-coming keeper Fabio. The goal came as a huge relief as the team was unable to produce very few offensive threats throughout the match.

Cruzeiro-RG scored the equalizer in the 82nd minute when Diego Torres appeared freely in front of the Internacional goal, blasting the ball past a helpless keeper, Agenor.

With the 1-1 result during regulation, the match was decided in penalty kicks. With misses from Marquinhos and Agenor, Cruzeiro-RG won the contest with a 5-4 victory.

Internacional head coach Celso Roth opted to use his reserve players in Saturday's semifinals match, hoping to preserve his starting players for their Libertadores Cup match at home against Mexico's Jaguares on February 23.

The result, however, may end up costing the coach's job due to fan frustration.