Yankee doodle dandies
PHILADELPHIA — The United States overcame a battling display from El Salvador on Wednesday to advance to a CONCACAF Gold Cup semifinal showdown with Costa Rica.
First-half goals from defenders Omar Gonzalez and Eric Lichaj secured a hardfought 2-0 quarterfinal win for the host, which is chasing its first Gold Cup title since 2013.
Bruce Arena’s side was made to work all the way by El Salvador, and only some superb saves from Tim Howard kept the Central American side at bay at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field.
“They pressed us well and we weren’t good enough with the ball to break their press,” Howard said.
“We got the two goals before halftime and that was obviously good for us. But we knew they were going to cause us problems.
“It’s good to get the win. We can work on a few things, but that’s what this tournament’s about.”
The host was let off the hook early on when Lichaj underhit a back-pass to Howard.
Rodolfo Zelaya latched onto the loose ball and darted clear only to be denied by a desperate late block from Howard, who advanced swiftly to snuff out the chance.
The remainder of the first half was dominated by a series of fouls as El Salvador frustrated American efforts to take control of the contest.
The US was unlucky to be denied the opener midway through the half when veteran former Tottenham forward Clint Dempsey, now with the Seattle Sounders, released Gyasi Zardes, who lifted his finish above striker Derby Carrillo, only to be flagged for offside.
Replays later showed Carrillo was onside.
As tempers flared Lichaj was lucky to escape with a caution when he flattened Dennis Pineda near the halfway line.
Four minutes before the break, however, the US broke the deadlock when Gonzalez leaped to glance in Michael Bradley’s freekick to make it 1-0.
Deep into first-half stoppage time, Lichaj made it 2-0 with a goal that owed everything to Bradleys guile.
The former Borussia Monchengladbach and Roma striker left Henry Romero for dead with a brilliant turn and then slipped a pass into the feet of Lichaj, who controlled to shoot beneath Carrillo for his first international goal.
The US now faces 2014 World Cup quarterfinalist Costa Rica in Saturday’s semifinals.
The match represents an opportunity for the US to avenge its humiliating 4-0 loss to Costa Rica during 2018 World Cup qualifiers last year, but Howard shied from any score-settling rhetoric.
“It’s not about what happened in the past,” he said. “It’s about winning on Saturday night and advancing to a final.”
Los Ticos advanced to the last four after Panama defender Anibal Godoy headed into his own net to give Costa Rica a 1-0 victory in Wednesday’s earlier last-eight clash.
The Central American rivals were deadlocked in the second half when Costa Rica’s David Guzman swung a long freekick toward the Panamanian goal.