Uruguay beats Brazil on penalties after brutal battle – that saw 41 FOULS – in Las Vegas to reach Copa America semifinals and set up showdown against Colombia
It was a match in which skill and scoring ability gave way to shameless brutality.
Four yellow cards and one red card in total may not have been enough in a match in which Uruguay and Brazil committed 41 fouls.
Neither team played well enough to earn a goal in regulation time and for the third time in the Copa America quarter-finals the match was decided on penalties.
Only one team had to win, and that team was Uruguay, who reached the last four of this tournament for the first time since 2011.
There is a semi-final with Colombia in Charlotte, North Carolina, where there is a chance to compete for the title.
No fewer than 41 fouls were called in a match between Uruguay and Brazil that got out of hand
It included four yellow cards and this red card, which left Uruguay with ten men.
Uruguay were forced to the bench early on when Ronald Araujo suffered a serious injury and had to be replaced in the 33rd minute. Fortunately for La Celeste, they had a replacement ready in Jose Maria Gimenez.
Possession at half-time was equal, but Brazil had created more big chances – none of which were successful. It remained that way in the first ten minutes of the second half – with shots flying high, mistakes being made and miscommunication between both teams. Not to mention how rough this match was played.
This wasn’t Jogo Bonito in action, it was more like ‘Twilight Zone football’, where physical challenges and attempts to injure someone were more important than actually playing the game.
Much was made of the inclusion of 17-year-old Endrick in the starting line-up. Earlier in the tournament, he became the youngest player to enter the field for the Selecao at the Copa America since 2011. But the Real Madrid-bound forward had no impact on the match.
The Seleção looked set to miss the services of Vinícius Junior, who was absent due to a pile of yellow cards.
Promising moments were repeatedly swept aside. A Brazilian attack was thwarted in the 67th minute when the Uruguay defence surrounded Joao Gomez and a shot from Lucas Paqueta was blocked.
A subsequent counter-attack saw a cross from Nahitan Nandez go high over the byline – another big moment that led to nothing.
Uruguay’s Sergio Rochet lies on the ground during the quarter-final against Brazil
Nahitan Nandez argues with referee Dario Herrera after showing him a red card
The low point of the ‘Twilight Zone’ portion of the game came when Nandez unnecessarily tackled Rodrygo. A lengthy VAR review showed that the full-back had made a straight-leg tackle right on the Real Madrid player’s ankle – leading to referee Dario Herrera issuing a red card.
With penalties looking closer, substitutions were made that were not the fault of the takers. Within four minutes, Uruguay had replaced Darwin Nunez with Giorgian De Arrascaeta and Facundo Pellistri with Guillermo Varela, while Brazil replaced Paqueta with Douglas Luiz and Raphinha with Savio.
This match did not deserve a goal in open play. Neither side played well enough to deserve one. Only a penalty shootout – the third shootout of these quarter-finals – could decide who advanced.
Even before that began, the two teams had to be separated so they could no longer fight each other in the center circle, further evidence of the brutality of this rivalry.
Manuel Ugarte celebrates his decisive penalty that sends Uruguay through to the semi-finals
In the first round, Uruguay’s Federico Valverde shot into the side netting. Brazil’s Eder Militao shot to the left of the keeper and Uruguay’s Sergio Rochet saved.
In the second round, Rodrigo Betancur fired easily past Alisson’s diving arms, while Andreas Pereira sent Rochet the wrong way.
De Arrascaeta began the third round by capping his shot with a thundering strike. Douglas Luiz, fresh off the bench in the 82nd minute, fired his shot to the keeper’s right and wide of the post.
With the winning kick at his feet, Jose Maria Gimenez saw his shot saved by a diving Alisson – who raised his fist in celebration – and Gabriel Martinelli slammed home his effort to keep the Selecao alive.
The final kick of the match was a shot from Manuel Ugarte that found the net, beating Alisson and sending Uruguay to the semi-finals for the first time in over a decade.
