The USMNT fought hard on Monday night, but they couldn’t bring home the victory against Uruguay and are out of the Copa América. Here we’ll be looking into what happened before, during, and after the game.
Before The Game
Leading up to the game there’s a couple things to mention. The first one being that Tim Weah will be out for an additional game due to his previous red card. Is this surprising? No, not really. If you whack a guy on the back of the head during a match, an additional suspension isn’t too shocking.
Photo By EDUARDO MUNOZ/AFP via Getty Images
Secondly, despite being taken off at half time in the game against Panama, Matt Turner is back on the lineup. After being in “limited training” over the weekend, he was given the OK to play in Monday night’s game.
Lastly, the ref. Monday night’s ref was Kevin Ortega from Peru, and it was his first time officiating for a USMNT match. Compared to other officials in the tournament, he has less experience and that can be seen through some decisions he made during the match.
First Half
‘17 Minutes In: Yellow For The USMNT?
Seventeen minutes into the match we see our first yellow given to Tyler Adams (#4). Despite being the one who got his ankle stomped on, Tyler Adams was given a yellow card over Uruguay’s player Mathías Olivera (#16). This is where the ref’s inexperience starts to get shown.
‘33 Minutes In: Stop. Start. Go. Save.
In the 33rd minute Chris Richards (#3) was rewarded a yellow card, but play didn’t stop. The ref (Ortega) began to pull out the yellow card for Richards, but Uruguay kept going. Ortega then quickly tried to hide the yellow and let play continue on. This awkward hesitation allowed Uruguay to make a break away towards the goal.
Luckily, Tim Ream saw what was happening & managed to get into a perfect position to block Uruguay’s attempted goal. This play was another example of Ortega’s inexperience, either you commit to giving the yellow and stop play, or allow the play to continue and give the yellow once play is stopped. You can’t begin to show a yellow and then allow for play to continue.
Halftime
At the half the score was still 0-0. Despite the lack of goals and interesting calls by the referee, the USMNT have been playing well. By no means has it been perfect, but the score is still tied against one of the best teams in the Copa América.
Second Half
‘66 Minutes In: And VAR Says. . .
In the 66th minute Uruguay managed to put one in the net after the initial header attempt was saved by Turner. The rebound from Turner’s initial save was met by Mathías Olivera who put it in the back of the net.
Then, almost all of the USMNT players put their hands up signaling offside. The goal went to review and US fans waited with bated breath to see whether it would be ruled offside or not. Fans and commentators alike were expecting the goal to be reversed and called offside, but in the end Uruguay was ruled to be onside and the goal remained. Fans and announcers were shocked by this decision, and the USMNT fate was sealed.
Extra Time
7+ Minutes: Attempt Upon Attempt
In the last seven minutes of extra time, the USMNT had three attempted shots. The first one by Cristian Pulisic was blocked by José Giménez. The second attempt from Pulisic went over the goal. The third and final attempt of the game was made by Malik Tillman off his right foot but was again blocked by José Giménez.
Post Game Thoughts
In the end, the USMNT was knocked out of the Copa América and Uruguay and Panama moved onto the next stage. The team played well against Uruguay, but playing well wasn’t enough. Despite the loss, the USMNT didn’t look bad out there and I’m excited to see what comes next for them with the 2026 World Cup getting closer and closer.
Watch the full match highlights here and stay up to date on the USMNT by following them on Instagram.
