Suarez scores, Uruguay soar

Veteran striker nets stoppage-time equaliser v Canada, leading to third-place win via tie-breaker; coach Marcelo Bielsa salutes star forward’s physical skills and mental aptitude in tight clash

Luis Suarez still has a knack for big plays. The 37-year-old Suarez, Uruguay’s career scoring leader, tied the score two minutes into second-half stoppage time, and Uruguay beat Canada 4-3 on penalty shootout after a 2-2 draw on Saturday night to finish third in the Copa America.

Rochet’s vital penalty save

Uruguay goalkeeper Sergio Rochet saved Ismael Kone’s weak penalty kick after the shooter’s stutter step on Canada’s third attempt, and Alphonso Davies put Canada’s fifth and final kick off the crossbar.

Uruguay players celebrate winning the penalty shootout against Canada in the third-place match at Charlotte on Saturday. Pic/AFP

Federico Valverde, Rodrigo Bentancur, Giorgian de Arrascaeta and Suarez converted Uruguay’s attempts past goalkeeper Dayne St Clair while Jonathan David, Moise Bombito and Mathieu Choiniere made their kicks for Canada, which went first in the shootout. “Uruguay are one of the three best teams of this tournament and taking into consideration that the tournament included Central, North and South America, and we finished third, allows us to be optimistic [about future],” Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa said.

But Bielsa clearly wasn’t happy with his team’s effort, and added that he may have misjudged how tired his team was after playing on just two days rest. “The draw was barely deserved,” Bielsa said. Bielsa praised Suarez’s “physical skills and mental aptitude” after the match following his 69th international goal on a quick attack following a centering pass from Jose Maria Gimenez. “It is very well known what he has done throughout his career and having shared this time with him, I believe he is a top-notch player and a great teammate,” Bielsa said of Suarez.

Canada put on big show

Canada, who hired American Jesse Marsch as coach in May, will consider the tournament one of its best performances since winning the 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup. The Canadians reached the World Cup for the second time in 2022, the first since 1986. Canada made six changes for their starting semi-final line-up and Uruguay made two.

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