USA down Canada in penalties to book semifinals; Jamaica beat Guatemala | OneFootball

The final two 2023 Gold Cup quarterfinal matches took place Sunday evening. Here is what went down in Cincinnati.

USA vs Canada

Scorers: Vazquez 89′, Kennedy (OG) 114′ ; Vitória (P) 92′, Shaffelburg 111′

The USA controlled the possession for long spells in the first half, but failed to carve out any high-quality scoring chances to break the deadlock.

A chance finally fell to an American foot, but it was at the wrong end of the pitch. A superb cross from Junior Hoilett took a deflection off of Bryan Reynolds before fizzing just over the crossbar to spare Reynolds’ blushes.

One shot on goal through the first 45 minutes told the story, as neither side managed to find their footing in front of goal before the break.

The United States created a flurry of chances in the second half, but they appeared to use up their good fortune in front of goal in the group stage.

Extra time looked all but nailed, yet Brandon Vazquez had other plans. The FC Cincinnati man set his home crowd alight in the dying minutes with a headed strike, appearing to snatch the win for the USA.

However, the drama continued just three minutes later as a controversial handball in the box led to a Canadian penalty-kick. The subsequent spot-kick was dispatched by Steven Vitória to level proceedings and send the match to extra time.

While the USA dominated the extra time period, their hard work was undone by one Canada counterattack, as Jacob Shaffelburg went on a solo run before send a deflected shot past Matt Turner to snatch the lead for the visitors in the 111th minute.

Their advantage would not last long however, as a scramble in the box led to a Scott Kennedy to see the scoreline levelled once again to force penalties.

After a Canada missed their first two attempts, the USA responded by scoring three of their next four. Charles-Andreas Brym saw his shot hit the crossbar in the fifth round, seeing the United States book their ticket to the semifinals, where they will take on Panama

Guatemala vs Jamaica

Scorers: Bell 50′

A second-half strike was all Jamaica needed to book their spot in the 2023 Gold Cup semifinals, as they chase their first ever triumph in the tournament.

Despite a the two sides being separated bu nearly 60 places in the FIFA rankings, chances were flowing at both ends in a frantic opening 45 minutes.

With a partisan crowd behind them, Guatemala appeared fearless in the face of a Jamaica side that featured a handful of Premier League based stars.

Jamaica finally broke through after the break however, as Amari’i Bell popped up from defense to cap off a superb team move and fire the Reggae Boyz into the lead just five minutes into the second half.

A late push from Guatemala gave Jamaica a reason to sweat, but a pair of high-quality saves from Andre Blake ensured Heimir Hallgrímsson’s secured a place in the semifinals, where they will square off with Mexico.