CHESTER, Pa. -- After losing a heartbreaking Gold Cup semifinal match to Jamaica on Wednesday, Jurgen Klinsmann and his US national team players vowed to take the third-place game seriously and try to end the tournament on a high note.
But, in the end, that was easier said than done.
In what was a mostly listless consolation game Saturday -- in front of a mostly listless PPL Park crowd -- the US lost a shootout to Panama to finish a tournament they were expected to win in fourth place.
“This game today had a weird feeling for both sides,” Klinsmann said in his postgame press conference. “We wanted to just to make sure nothing bad really happens there and let’s just get it done. I’m not blaming any players if mistakes were made.”
The US certainly made their share of mistakes as Panama looked the sharper -- and hungrier -- side for most of the contest, amassing five times as many shots as the tourney hosts.
The Americans finished with only two shots on target and missed their final three PK attempts in the shootout to drop two straight Gold Cup games for the first time ever.
But the first loss against Jamaica, of course, hurt much more than the second.
“That took the wind out,” Klinsmann admitted. “That’s normal. That’s fine.”
It wasn’t just the USA getting over Wednesday's crazy Gold Cup semifinal doubleheader. Panama were the victim of self-admitted referee mistakes in a heartbreaking loss against Mexico, and it may have been just the right motivation against a USMNT side that struggled to find its footing after its own shocking setback.
“There was just a lot of stuff going on outside the field,” Klinsmann said. “There was always a sense of being uncertain what would happen next. … There was kind of this feeling that was there from the beginning in this tournament that you always wonder what would happen. So that kind of overshadowed everything that really went on.”
Goalkeeper Brad Guzan, who kept the US in the game with nine saves and another in the shootout, agreed with his coach’s overall Gold Cup assessment and called it a “challenging four weeks.”
And after such a grueling start to the tourney, that made it even harder for the players to finish a flourish.
“I think it was obviously a weird atmosphere for everybody,” Guzan said. “I’m not taking anything away from [Panama] because they won the game and that’s what it’s about. I don’t think it’s our best performance by any means.”
When pressed what specifically went wrong or asked to talk about the direction of the program, Klinsmann mostly deferred. But as Panama loudly celebrated in the next room, the US coach did admit that he and his players “will take our lessons” heading into their October playoff with the eventual 2015 Gold Cup champions for the right to go to the next Confederations Cup.
“This team will get better,” he said. “The youngsters will learn from their mistakes.”
Dave Zeitlin covers the Philadelphia Union for MLSsoccer.com. Email him at djzeitlin@gmail.com.
