A moment of madness from Timothy Weah put the United States’ Copa America campaign in limbo on Thursday, as the hosts lost 2-1 to Panama. “We know what we signed for and who we played for in the Copa America, and we knew it was going to be a battle,” U.S. midfielder Tyler Adams said afterward.
USA fighting to stay in Copa America after loss to Panama
A moment of madness from Timothy Weah put the United States’ Copa America campaign in limbo on Thursday, as the hosts lost 2-1 to Panama.
Juventus winger Weah was sent off in the 18th minute after an off-the-ball clash with Panama’s Roderick Miller in a turbulent Group C match at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
Although Folarin Balogun put the United States ahead four minutes after Weah was sent off, Panama’s extra lead eventually came back to them and the Central American team responded with goals from Cesar Blackman and Jose Fajardo to win.
The loss means the United States must win or draw with group leader Uruguay in their final group match next Monday to have any chance of qualifying for the round of 16.
Uruguay booked their place in the quarterfinals by beating Bolivia 5-0 in East Rutherford on Thursday.
In Atlanta, U.S. coach Gregg Berhalter said after his team’s loss that the red card Weah received was the defining moment in the match, calling the expulsion “ridiculous.”
“It’s obvious that the incident that changed the course of the match was the red card and that puts us in a difficult position, but that’s what we expected from them,” Berhalter said.
