Canada and their coach, Jesse Marsch, are in dreamland tonight as they reach the semi-finals of the Copa America at their first attempt.
But their clash with Venezuela turned out to be more exciting than expected as the match went to penalties.
An early goal from Nashville SC star Jacob Shaffelburg again showed Canada’s quality, but the team could not capitalize on the many chances it created.
That led to a miraculous goal from the timeless Venezuelan virtuoso Salomon Rondon, who fired in the equaliser with an arching shot from over 36 metres.
The penalty shootout went to sudden death, with Ismael Kone scoring the winning shot to secure a semi-final against Argentina at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Jesse Marsch and Canada look forward to the Copa America semi-finals with confidence
But it was a thrilling affair, thanks in part to a wonder goal from Salomon Rondon
If you only watched the first 15 minutes of this game, it looked like Canada was going to dominate this game.
It was in the 14th minute that Les Rouges drew first blood with a perfectly poached goal from Jacob Shaffelburg. With Jonathan David running to the end line and then dribbling in, he managed to poke a pass to Shaffelburg – who fired the ball into the net with his foot.
He walked to the sideline and held up the jersey of Tajon Buchanan, his Canadian teammate who broke his leg earlier this week and required surgery.
Canada kept their foot on the gas pedal for the rest of the first half. A low cross from Richie Lareya in the 31st minute just missed striker Cyle Larin at the far post.
Venezuela created chances, but none of them were really a challenge for Canadian goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau.
In the second half, the situation was more balanced and neither side managed to make good passes, but Venezuela started to dominate the ball.
Venezuela’s momentum returned in the 65th minute, when a Canadian throw-in cleared the ball to 34-year-old Salomon Rondon.
Incomprehensibly, Crepeau was standing more than 40 yards from his goal. As the keeper ran back to correct his mistake, the ball fell to Rondon – who created space between himself and defender Moise Bombito and fired a long, arcing chip that bounced into the net to equalize.
Jacob Shaffelburg scored after just 14 minutes of the match with a beautifully poached goal
During his celebration, he paid tribute to his injured teammate and Canadian star player Tajon Buchanan
In the second half, Salomon Rondon scored the equalizer from over forty meters
Within two minutes, Canada nearly regained the lead, but Liam Millar’s shot went wide of the net and did not cross the goal line.
The match became tense and frantic, with Marsch seen shouting at officials after they had whistled Alphonso Davies for a foul in the 72nd minute.
No matter how hard they tried, Canada simply couldn’t produce anything of substance. Substitute Tani Oluwaseyi’s shot went high over the keeper in the 76th minute. Long balls and turnovers didn’t lead to productive chances. Oluwaseyi had another chance in the 81st minute, but his looping shot went over the bar.
Venezuela made hearts leap to the Canadian throat in the 84th minute when a ball fell perfectly into the penalty area for a La Vinotinto forward. A layoff pass to Miguel Navarro should have led to a shot on net, but his effort sailed high – sending the fullback crashing down the pitch.
Canada kept pressing in the final stages, but chances didn’t translate into goals. Shots kept going wide or being saved, and nothing Les Rouges did seemed to work. Penalties seemed destined.
Tensions rose when an angry Jesse Marsch was seen shouting at officials after a foul
Ismael Kone (8) scored the winning penalty in the sudden-death shootout for Canada
Canadian players celebrate their Copa America quarter-final victory
What we got was penalties. CONCACAF rules state that a draw in the quarterfinals will go straight to shoot-outs.
Rondon stepped up first for Venezuela and sent Crepeau the wrong way. Canada sent David to the spot first and his effort just missed the diving gloves of Venezuela’s keeper Rafael Romo.
In the second round, Yangel Herrera’s effort rolled wide of the keeper’s right post for the first mistake of the shootout. It was immediately answered by a mistake from Millar, who looked uncertain in his run-up and fired his shot over the bar.
In the third round, Tomas Rincon decided to fire his shot down the middle, giving Venezuela a 2-1 lead. Bombito, with laser pointers in his eyes, managed to avoid the distraction and fired his effort into the keeper’s left net.
Even in the fourth round, substitute Jefferson Savarino’s shot hit Crepeau’s glove and went off the post and out. Stephen Eustaquio stepped up for Canada and his shot was saved by Romo.
The pressure mounted in the fifth round. Jhonder Cadiz sent Crepeau the wrong way and all the pressure fell on Alphonso Davies. The Bayern Munich player fired into the back corner of the net and we went into sudden death.
Venezuelan substitute Wilker Angel saw his effort saved by a diving Crepeau – who read it perfectly. Canada’s hopes fell on Marseille’s Ismael Kone. He took a halting step and nearly froze before curling his shot to the keeper’s right and into the net to secure Canada’s first Copa America semi-final appearance.