Canada Exits Gold Cup After 6-5 Shootout Loss to Guatemala
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By Kaus Pandey
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Summary:
- Canada exited the Golden Cup quarterfinals with a 6-5 loss on penalties to Guatemala, following a 1-1 draw.
- Shaffelburg’s second yellow before halftime forced Canada to play with 10 men.
- Luc de Fougerolles missed the decisive penalty in the shootout.
Canada who beat El Salvador in the last round exited the Gold Cup on Sunday night after losing to Guatemala in a dramatic 6-5 penalty shootout after a 1-1 draw.
The match took a sharp turn late in the first half when Jacob Shaffelburg picked up a second yellow card, leaving Canada a man down for the rest of the night.
Despite going down a man, Canada held firm until the 69th minute, when Guatemala’s Rubio Rubin equalized with a sharp header off a cross from Oscar Santis.
Before the red card, Canada had looked firmly in control after Jonathan David buried a 30th-minute penalty, his 36th goal in 67 appearances, to give his team the lead.
The call came after Tani Oluwaseyi was clipped in the box by Aaron Herrera. Though minimal, the contact passed video review.
Shaffelburg’s dismissal proved costly. Canadian head coach Jesse Marsch reflected,
Obviously I feel for Jacob, but he’s got to learn from that and the team does, to. It’s important for us to learn from this, because I think we lost because we beat ourselves and we can’t do that in important matches, and we certainly can’t do that next summer (at the World Cup).
Coach Marsch: “We Will Learn From This”
In the shootout, it came down to 19-year-old Luc de Fougerolles, whose attempt in the seventh round clipped the crossbar. Jose Morales then converted the winning penalty to send Guatemala into their first Gold Cup semifinal since 1996.
Guatemala coach Luis Fernando Tena through an interpreter said,
This victory tastes great. We know that we are conveying a lot of happiness to our fellow countrymen and women. We are exhausted but excited.
Canada had its chances to win and move forward in the Cup. Kenderson Navarro stopped Cyle Larin’s shot in the fifth round, but Guatemala captain Jose Pinto sent his shot high, giving Canada another chance. Canada had a real chance to put the game away, but they just couldn’t finish it off.
They came in with a strong track record against Guatemala, but that didn’t mean much once things got tense in a tight, back-and-forth quarterfinal.
With a handful of key players missing through injuries and club duties, Canada had a hard time keeping the momentum they started with.
Marsch,
We have to find a way now to make sure we’re at our best in the toughest games and in the toughest moments And I promise you we will learn from this and we will move forward.
