July 13: On July 13, at the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, Uruguay edged out Canada in a thrilling penalty shootout to clinch third place in the Copa America 2024. The match ended in a 2-2 draw during regular time, with Luis Suarez scoring a late equalizer for Uruguay.
Uruguay’s Rodrigo Bentancur also found the back of the net during regulation time, while Canada’s goals were scored by Jonathan David and Ismael Kone. This marked Canada’s first appearance in the Copa America, where they finished in fourth place.
The penalty shootout saw Canada’s Ismael Kone have his shot saved by Uruguay’s goalkeeper Sergio Rochet, and Alphonso Davies hit the crossbar, leading to Uruguay’s 4-3 victory in the shootout. Both Suarez and Bentancur successfully converted their penalty kicks for Uruguay.
Sergio Rochet reflected on the match, telling DSports, “The previous match was a hard blow, but we knew we had to be mentally prepared because finishing third is not the same as finishing fourth. We made a great effort against Canada, but the wear and tear was noticeable. We equalized with a great goal by Suarez and finished it off in penalties.”
The first half saw Bentancur score an early goal in the eighth minute, swiveling and smashing home a knock-down from a corner. Canada responded 14 minutes later with an acrobatic scissor kick goal by Kone. Shortly after Canada’s goal, Uruguay’s Facundo Pellistri scored, but the goal was disallowed due to an offside call.
Canada took the lead in the 80th minute when Kone’s long-range shot was parried by Rochet, allowing Jonathan David to slot home the rebound. Uruguay continued to press for an equalizer, with Canadian goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair making a crucial save against Suarez’s close-range effort just moments before Suarez eventually equalized.
Uruguay’s persistence paid off in the penalty shootout, securing their third-place finish in the Copa America 2024.
