Editorial (July 20, 2017) – El Salvador are out of the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup. After an inspirational group stage performance, they advanced to the knockouts for the third time in the last four Gold Cups. They lost yesterday to the United States 2-0 in the Quarterfinals. While the scoreline didn’t reflect how well the pressed the Yanks, some unprofessional decisions spoiled their day and their tournament overall.
El Salvador Unprofessionalism Against USA Taints Gold Cup Performance
La Azul y Blanco came into this game as massive underdogs, but they were already playing with house money. On paper, El Salvador were the third best team in their group. After faiding against Mexico in their opening game, they had two good performances against Curacao and Jamaica.
Feel Good Story Of The Tournament:
Rodolfo Zelaya and Nelson Bonilla killed it together offensively. Zelaya’s play in particular was making an argument for a move to a bigger club in Central America or possibly MLS. The defenders, while relatively unknown, had given up given up just one goal outside of the Mexico game, and it was on a PK. Goalkeeper Derby Carrillo was having himself a tournament as well.
Not only did they achieve their goal by getting out of the group, they did so by playing well as a team. Several players were have standout tournaments. They were all set up to give the Unites States a run for their money. In many ways, El Salvador was the feel good story of the Gold Cup.
Poor Finishing Against The United States:
The Salvadorians was held scoreless last night for the first time in this Gold Cup. They had their fair share of chances with eight shots (one on goal). Zelaya had a breakaway just three minutes in but was robbed by Tim Howard at the top of the box. Dennis Pineda had a great chance in the second half, but could not finish.
These woes were similar to the Jamaica game. The side probably deserved a goal against the Americans and they created enough chances to get a second goal (and a win) against Jamaica. Chalk it up to poor finishing. Maybe they got nervous playing on the biggest stage of their lives. Still, with the opponent’s defense having an off day, it was uncharacteristic for them to not finish at all. A goal for Zelaya could have gotten him several good contract offers this summer.
Going Full CONCACAF Luis Suarez:
El Salvador was also a disappointment off the ball. Every Gold Cup game is bound to have some CONCACAFing, but the second half last night went to a whole different level. Center back Henry Romero had two separate incidents with Jozy Altidore that were absolutely shameful. First he violated Altidore’s pectoral region with what my junior high school referred to as a purple nurple. A few minutes later, also waiting for a corner, Romero bit the back of Altidore’s left shoulder. Altidore reacted in visible surprise and pain on both plays.
Both of these unprofessional acts happened off the ball and with a goalkeeper blocking the view of the official. Nothing was called, though the replays showed both events clearly. Video Assisted Refereeing could have assisted on these plays. Both plays were worthy of a red card and a multi-game suspension based on precident from FIFA.
The team had several other players commit fouls that went un(der)punished. Just after halftime, Bonilla was late on a tackle to Eric Lichaj, leaving his studs up. A foul was called, but there was no card. On the broadcast, Landon Donovan called for a red card. I personally would given a yellow card. Alexander Larín was given a yellow for a hard tackle later in the half. Head Referee Drew Fischer appeared to lose control of the game the longer it went.
Final Thoughts:
The thing that baffles me about the actions of Romero and other La Azul y Blanco players is where this came from. El Salvador didn’t play dirty in the first three and a half games of this tournament. There was some time wasting with a lead. A few players went down in and around the box easily. But it wasn’t anything that stood out in the context of the tournament as far as CONCACAFing went.
Did the coaching staff instruct them at halftime to rough up the U.S. to get in their heads? Were these spontaneous actions of frustration? I’ll admit I don’t watch much Primera División. Is this something characteristic of the league? Did Luis Suarez give the lockeroom pep talk?
It was profoundly disappointing to see these actions from El Salvador. They were the feel good story of the Gold Cup, yet everyone is going to remember this performance and these shameful shenanigans over that. Several players could have played their way to better club opportunities. Romero and others on both sides of the ball squandered this.
We’ll have to wait and see what this means for them individually going forward in the transfer window. I doubt CONCACAF will levy any punishments, but they should.
