ATLANTA – A moment of madness from Timothy Weah left the United State’s Copa America campaign hanging by a thread on June 27, as the hosts crashed to a shock 2-1 loss to Panama.
The Juventus winger was sent off in the 18th minute after an off-the-ball clash with Panama’s Roderick Miller in a stormy Group C battle at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Although Folarin Balogun fired the Americans into the lead four minutes after Weah’s dismissal, Panama’s extra-man advantage proved too much as they hit back with goals from Cesar Blackman and Jose Fajardo to seal victory.
The defeat means the US will almost certainly have to win or draw against group leaders Uruguay in their final group game on July 1 to have any chance of advancing to the knockout rounds.
Uruguay all but assured themselves of a place in the last eight with a thumping 5-0 win over Bolivia in East Rutherford.
US coach Gregg Berhalter said after his team’s loss that Weah’s red card had been the decisive moment of the match, describing the sending off as “silly”.
“Obviously the red card puts us in a tough spot,” he said.
“I can’t fault the effort of the group after going down a man. The guys dug in and we were close to coming out with a point. It’s a shame, because there was more in this game, and Timmy’s silly decision leaves us shorthanded.”
Weah, meanwhile, took to social media to apologise.
“A moment of frustration led to an irreversible consequence, and for that, I am deeply sorry to my teammates, coaches, family and our fans,” he wrote on Instagram.
“I sincerely apologise to everyone. My love for this team goes beyond just football and I’m so sad and angry at myself for putting my brothers through what they went through tonight.”
The 24-year-old, who is black, was one of the players targeted by online racist abuse after the match. The US football federation has since come out in support of those affected.
“These actions are not only unacceptable but also contrary to the values of respect and inclusivity that we uphold as an organisation,” US Soccer said.
A fractious finale to the game also saw Adalberto Carrasquilla sent off after a cynical hack on US captain Christian Pulisic as Panama hung on for the win.
“Playing in a Copa America, we knew it was going to be a fight,” US midfielder Tyler Adams said.
“Credit to Panama, they did their job and got the result. I think moving forward, we need to control our emotions in certain situations. The team fought for everything after we got the red card. We have all to fight for in the next game.”
Their next opponents Uruguay looked in ominous form in the other game, demolishing Bolivia at the MetLife Stadium.
Facundo Pellistri, Darwin Nunez, Maximiliano Araujo, Federico Valverde and Rodrigo Bentancur were all on target for the Uruguayans, who will progress as group winners if they avoid defeat by the US. AFP, REUTERS
