▲ Forward Darwin Núñez (19), scorer of the Uruguayans’ second goal, fights for the ball before the Bolivian defender Luis Haquin, yesterday during the match held at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Photo Afp
From the Editorial Staff
The newspaper La Jornada
Friday, June 28, 2024, p. a12
Uruguay does not plan on letting opportunities slip away and with just a few strokes of the pen, it secured its place in the quarter-finals of the 2024 Copa América by beating Bolivia 5-0; a great contrast to the surprising 2-1 defeat suffered by the host United States against Panama.
The Uruguayan team met exactly those expectations that placed them as favorites and now reached six points to become the leader of Group C. The definition of the passes will be finalized on Monday when the Uruguayans face the Americans, who are tied on three points with Panama, which will be measured against an already eliminated Bolivia.
Under the command of Marcelo Bielsa, Uruguay seems to have regained the quality of football power that it boasted in the past, as evidenced by its good progress in the Conmebol World Cup qualifiers and now in the continental tournament.
Yesterday they had control the entire time at MetLife Stadium and in a matter of minutes they settled the duel. In a fast play that easily broke the rival defense, Facundo Pellistri (8) finished off with a popcorn next to the post to make clear the superiority of the Charrúas.
Persistent in attack, Uruguayan star Darwin Núñez (20) also fought for the goal and reached the nets shortly after in a solo play. Maximiliano Araújo (77), Federico Valverde (81) and Rodrigo Bentancur (89) closed the scoring.
Only the entry of Luis Suárez in the final stretch was an extra gift for the fans. Thus, Uruguay is already thinking about the next phase where it hopes to meet Brazil or Colombia.
Meanwhile, the desire of the United States to start this tournament at home with a perfect pace was frustrated. Being at a numerical disadvantage conditioned the Stars and Stripes team by losing 2-1 to Panama, which was on the brink of elimination.
It was all drama and controversy at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. The Americans reached the nets with a shot by Chris Richards that was disallowed for being offside and shortly afterwards they were left with 10 men after the expulsion of Timothy Weah. They still opened the scoring.
With a left-footed shot that first hit the post and then entered the net, Folarin Balogun (22) unleashed euphoria. However, Panama would respond with a goal from César Blackman (26) and then José Fajardo (83) sealed the victory.
Although they won, the Panamanians left with a bittersweet taste, as Adalberto Carrasquilla was expelled for a strong sweep over Christian Pulisic, the star of the American team who could do little.
2024-06-28 08:56:39
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