The U.S. men’s national team crashed out of the Copa America in the group stages on Monday, losing 1-0 to Uruguay at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium.
The tournament hosts played with plenty of intensity throughout the match and managed to narrowly outdo Uruguay in possession, but even an encouraging first half showed signs of trouble. While the U.S. limited Uruguay to zero shots on target, they took just one shot before halftime — a troubling figure for the team that was in desperate need of goals.
A disciplined first half turned into a sloppy second half, though, as the USMNT’s search for a goal became frenzied. It did not help that Panama, who they were tied on points with before kickoff, had taken the lead against Bolivia but the latter’s equalizer offered a reprieve midway through the second half. USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter thrust each of his pointer fingers up to tell his players that the score in the other game was 1-1, putting them back in second place.
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That hope was short-lived, though, as Uruguay scored the game’s lone goal just seconds later. Mathias Olivera scored a header off a set piece in the 66th minute, the goal surviving a lengthy VAR check that indicated that Chris Richards kept him onside on the play. The U.S. mad dash for a goal felt even more haphazard from there, and in the end, they managed just 0.58 expected goals from eight shots.
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The refereeing was also a constant spot of bother for both teams throughout the match, as Peru’s Kevin Ortega seemed unwilling to keep a chippy game at bay. He handed out three yellow cards but let several big challenges slide and also made an unusual choice by choosing to play advantage in Uruguay’s favor while handing a yellow card to the U.S.’ Richards in the first half. Several players also picked up injuries because of the physical nature of the game — Uruguay’s Maximiliano Araujo exited the game on a stretcher and in a neck brace while the U.S.’ Folarin Balogun also came off before the half with a hip issue. American Joe Scally also got hit before the break following a tackle from Darwin Nunez but managed to play much of the second half.
What’s next for the USMNT?
This result, coupled with Panama’s eventual 3-1 win over Bolivia, sends the U.S. packing earlier than they had anticipated. The tournament hosts were expected to reach the quarterfinals after being placed in what many considered to be a favorable group, failing to truly impress in any of their three group stage games. The Copa America was meant to serve as a measuring stick for the USMNT ahead of the 2026 World Cup on home soil, and instead of having a chance to prove their worth against the best of the best, the U.S. faltered against not just a team on the rise in Uruguay but stumbled against the statistically inferior Panama and showed nothing new in their win over Bolivia.
The Copa America experience now calls into question the direction of the USMNT since the 2022 World Cup, with many arguing that the team has made little progress since that tournament. The early exit will also inspire a new round of criticism for Berhalter, whose seat will no doubt be hotter as a result.
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Publish date : 2024-07-02 08:10:00
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