Uruguay won the third Copa America playoff in the penalty shootout, Luis Suarez was the hero.

Of course, it had to be Luis Suarez.

The 37-year-old Inter Miami striker, one of football’s most divisive and controversial players, came off the bench to equalize for Uruguay in stoppage time and force the chaotic game into a penalty shootout.

Ismael Kone, who had scored a brilliant innovative goal earlier, and Alphonso Davies, the star of this Canadian team, both failed to convert their penalties to give Uruguay the victory.

Rodrigo Bentancur put Uruguay ahead with a sharply angled finish and Kone equalized for Canada in… well, we’re not sure what it was. Maybe a standing bicycle kick with one foot on the ground? Whatever it was, it was ambitious and daring – and we love it.

Facundo Pellistri had his first-half goal disallowed after a video assistant referee (VAR) review, but then Jonathan David came off the bench to score for Canada in the 80th minute. It looked like his team would get a $1 million windfall (the third-place team in the Copa America gets $5 million and the fourth-place team gets $4 million) but Suárez had other ideas.

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Comments from two former Leeds United coaches before the match – Marcelo Bielsa said the tournament was “unprofessional” and Jesse Marsh claimed his team had been treated like “second-class” citizens – and it was always a There was going to be a lively competition.

And ultimately it was Uruguay and Bielsa who came out on top.

Pablo Maurer, Joshua Cloke and Jack Lang analyze the big talking points…

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Enter, Luis Suarez…

What a treat it was to see Uruguayan legend Luis Suarez in his final Copa America match. He scored his 69th international goal on Saturday night and did so in most dramatic fashion, allowing Uruguay to equalize in stoppage time. Moments later, he scored an inch-perfect penalty to push Uruguay to victory.

For Suarez it was somewhat of a liberation. Despite the player’s insistence that he was not bothered by playing only a few minutes in Uruguay’s first five matches, many in the Uruguayan press publicly criticized Bielsa for not including him further. On Saturday, El Loco did so, joining him at halftime. The Inter Miami striker did not disappoint.

“I’m enjoying every moment,” Suarez told Uruguayan media at the start of the tournament. “It’s something that at my age, as you get older, you enjoy it more and more, whether you’re playing a lot or playing a little, because you know that the flame of football doesn’t go out. It is happening.”

On a narrow, scattered field in Charlotte, North Carolina, we watched as the flame grew even slower. However, for a moment, it became very bright.

pablo maurer

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What does this mean for Canada?

To start, Canada loses money by finishing third at $5 million instead of $4 million. Yes, that’s cash that some people never expected would be coming in when the Copa America started well over three weeks ago. But the organization needs cash!

Canada has every reason to feel confident and maintain a high level of self-belief after a remarkable Copa America run. This is the team that was out of the picture after the World Cup and until 2023 and only qualified for the Copa America through a tight one-game playoff.

One of the most obvious positives of the result was the play of Jonathan David as a substitute. David’s finishing has been criticized throughout the tournament, but his second goal for Canada against Uruguay was a reminder of how composed he can be in front of goal.

But even so, the crushing defeat to Uruguay on penalties still holds long-term lessons for Canada. At their best, they were able to lock out the game and earn a tough result. That he let the lead slip away late in the game was a reminder of how difficult it is to hold a lead against the best players in the world. Marsh and Canada will undoubtedly look to improve their defending late in games. The result should not impact their performance throughout the Copa America and the steps forward taken by the program, but rather it should highlight the gap between teams like Venezuela and Uruguay. This is a gulf that Canada will hope to understand better in 2026.

joshua cloke

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Bicycle standing in the corner?

How do you describe Con’s goal? It was simultaneously a bicycle kick, a hooked volley, and a lob, yet it was none of those things.

A stationary bicycle? It just covers it, but it still doesn’t fully capture the incredible invention and athleticism displayed by Cone. In that case, most players would have probably tried a header, which would not have worked. Kon had come up with something completely new and he had enough energy to pull it off.

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Of course, that’s what the third-place matches are all about. Sure, there’s some extra prize money on offer but none In fact Cares who wins. They are, at their best, a reminder that playing football is an end in itself. No pressure, no worries. And Kone’s moment of lift was the pinnacle of genius – even if his penalty in the shootout left much to be desired.

jack lang

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Did Uruguay have a point to prove?

The Uruguayan players have been through hell and high water in recent times. The team suffered a crushing defeat to Colombia in the semi-finals and what followed was a handful of Uruguayan players breaking into the seating area at Bank of America Stadium and confronting the crowd.

Following all this, tournament organizers CONMEBOL launched an investigation into the incident, and some South American outlets reported that more than 10 Uruguayan players could face some form of disciplinary action. Uruguay head coach Marcelo Bielsa turned his pre-match press conference into an opportunity to lambast CONMEBOL over what he said were its security failures, the condition of the pitches and a number of other issues.

Uruguay has faced its own criticisms stylistically. Bielsa’s teams have always been energetic, tough teams and the current Uruguay team is no exception. Their quarterfinal match against Brazil was the ugliest match of the tournament, and Bielsa faced much criticism for his team’s style of play. Canada has also been accused of playing dirty at times, which Marsh denied before Saturday’s match.

Undoubtedly Bielsa – and the entire Uruguay team – came into tonight’s match with a lot to play for beyond the prize money and tournament standings. And with his courageous performance – a stoppage-time equalizer and some well-taken penalties – he earned a small slice of redemption.

pablo maurer

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Why were so many seats vacant?

The presence of Canada and Uruguay in this match was probably a disappointment to tournament organizers – neither side is a big draw in the United States. The crowd at Bank of America Stadium seemed almost comically small at times, with a large number of empty seats present in both the lower and upper bowls and an entire section of the upper deck being completely empty. Perhaps also worth noting is that the European Championships do not bother with a third-place playoff.

CONMEBOL said so Attendance figures for this tournament are on track The 2016 Copa América Centenario, which was also played in the United States. Ticket prices for group stage and elimination matches have reached into the hundreds and in the secondary market, they can reach four figures. There have been other issues, too: Crowds at NFL stadiums have declined largely due to weak marketing, and extreme heat has caused problems at some games.

That wasn’t the case on a relatively nice evening in Charlotte on Saturday.

Some people are seeing this tournament as a dry run for the 2026 World Cup. It remains to be seen what lessons the organizers of that tournament will learn from this – if any.

pablo maurer

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Did Canada’s changed line-up work?

From the moment Marsh was hired, it was clear he had a broader goal in mind: for Canada to compete at the 2026 World Cup on home soil.

Every decision is made with the World Cup in mind, and perhaps the most prominent example of that approach was evident in the line-up Marsh prepared for the third-place game. Canada’s new head coach made drastic changes with four players making their Copa America debut.

Marsh’s preferred 13 (or so) players for 2026 are well established, but his secondary core of players has yet to emerge. By keeping Alphonso Davies, David and Stephen Eustaquio on the bench against Uruguay and instead starting Tani Oluwaseyi, Mathieu Choiniere, Ali Ahmed and especially 18-year-old centre-back Luc de Fougerols, Marsh gave opportunities to younger players. To play valuable minutes in must-win tournament games. It is a long-term bet that the benefits of these minutes will come in 2026 and that De Fougerols, for example, will become more accustomed to playing tough opponents like Uruguay in two years. That Marsh was able to make this call shows that he is fully on board with what the organization is trying to do for 2026.

Apart from a few nervous moments from de Fougerols, Canada’s new starters played well. Add this up and Marsh’s decision looks like another smart decision.

joshua cloke

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What did Marsh say?

Canada head coach after the match: “The players are disappointed with the way we lost the match,” he said. However, I was very positive towards them. We’ve been together for six weeks. And to come into this match, put some new players on the field, play against one of the best teams in the world for me and completely dominate the match, create big chances, we were very difficult for them for most of the match. There were more. ,

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(Top photo: Getty Images)