The Copa America was dealt a hard blow by the departure of the host country, the United States, which was unable to make it past the group stage and was eliminated after its defeat against Uruguay (0-1). Panama, which beat Bolivia 3-1, earned its place in the quarterfinals.
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Uruguay qualified on Monday as the first in its group in the Copa America after defeating the United States, the host country, 0-1 with a goal by Mathías Olivera, who was eliminated on the eve of July 4, a real humiliation.
The United States made a big push, dominating the opening minutes of the match by pressing high and dominating a Uruguay side that did not have Marcelo Bielsa on the bench.
The Americans would later regret not having taken advantage of those minutes to trouble Sergio Rochet’s goal. In fact, if there was any chance at the start, it was for the Celeste, but Darwin Núñez was unable to convert it.
A strong blow to the head of Maximiliano Araújo forced the match to be stopped for a few minutes; it was then that the players learned that Panama had taken the lead against Bolivia, virtually eliminating the United States. Araújo had to be taken off the field on a stretcher in the 27th minute due to head trauma, and was replaced by Cristian Olivera.
Uruguay took advantage of the break to take control of the match and the chances were not long in coming. In the 33rd minute the referee allowed the Celeste to quickly take a free kick, surprising the American players. Nahitan Nández was close to opening the scoring, but Matt Turner prevented it.
Facundo Pellistri had another one-on-one against the goalkeeper but he shot the ball badly. Shortly before the break, the United States suffered a major setback when they lost their striker Folarin Balogun to injury, with Ricardo Pepi coming on in his place.
The first half was a lackluster affair, with plenty of interruptions, grit and friction, with the unsurprising scoreline of a goalless draw at half-time. Nothing to lose With the results in Kansas City and Orlando, the Americans were out of the Copa America, so they had nothing left to lose.
But Gregg Berhalter’s men, with Weah and Balogun absent, were out of ideas and the game was tight and tense, with Federico Valverde taking the reins for the Uruguayan team. It wasn’t long after Arrowhead Stadium realized that Bolivia had tied in Orlando and the United States were back in the game that they were hit with a bucket of cold water.
The Celeste’s goal came with a long-range free kick from Nico de la Cruz, with a header from Ronald Araújo cleared by Turner, Mathías Olivera pushed it into the back of the net. It was the 66th minute. In the 74th, with no goalkeeper, Christian Pulisic had the chance to equalize, but his shot from outside the area was saved by Manuel Ugarte. The clearest chance for the Americans.
Shortly after the end of regulation time, the United States had another chance, a shot by Haji Wright that was poisoned by a rebound that Araújo and Rochet managed to clear. The United States tried until the end to score the honorary goal that would have been of no use to them. Uruguay concludes the group stage with 9 points and a full victory, followed by a Panama that also qualifies for the quarterfinals by knocking out the United States.
United, who said goodbye to the tournament tonight.
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