(Reuters) – Uruguay beat Brazil 4-2 on penalties on Saturday after a hard-fought 0-0 draw at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas to reach the Copa America semi-finals, where they will face Colombia.
With Brazil missing suspended Vinicius Junior from the stands, Dorival Junior's team struggled to create chances despite being given a numerical advantage after Uruguay's Nahitan Nandez was sent off late in the second half.
In the ensuing shootout, Sergio Roche saved Brazil's first penalty from Eder Militão, while team-mate Douglas Luiz hit the post to give Uruguay the advantage.
Goalkeeper Alisson Becker denied Jose Maria Jimenez and Gabriel Martinelli scored to keep Brazil alive, but Manuel Ugarte converted the decisive penalty to keep Uruguay in contention for a record 16th Copa triumph.
“It was a very tense game, against a very tough opponent and we were down a man in the final minutes, but we showed grit despite our youth,” Rocher said.
“We won the shootout and managed to save one… Honestly, this is great happiness for this team and this country, and it's well-deserved. We're very excited and we're going to keep going.”
It was an intense match with a combined 41 fouls recorded by both teams, with players from both teams engaging in fierce attacks and defences on the pitch.
Brazil's 17-year-old forward Endric was given no time to catch his breath as Uruguay applied high pressure and relentlessly tackled him.
At one point, Rafinha became enraged when Endric was shoved to the ground by Ronald Araujo, causing the Brazil captain to push back in anger, leading the referee to step in and shower harsh words on both players, before keeping his card in his pocket.
However, Araujo's night came to an early end when he was substituted with injury just after the half-hour and the game suddenly came to life a few minutes later when Darwin Nunez missed a header from close range.
Seconds later, Rafinha had a shot on a counter attack that was denied by goalkeeper Rocher in Brazil's best chance of the first half.
Red card in review
With Uruguay unable to find a breakthrough, Marcelo Bielsa made three substitutions by the 67th minute, but his plans began to go awry when Nandez was shown a red card by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) for a hard tackle on Rodrigo.
Nandez raised his boots to try and dispossess the Brazilian but only caught his ankle, but the Real Madrid winger avoided serious injury and was able to play on.
But Brazil was unable to score against 10-man Uruguay, who defended with a numerical advantage and opted to try their luck in a penalty shootout, which never has extra time in a Copa America match except in the final.
For Brazil, it will be their second consecutive quarterfinal loss on penalties at a major tournament since their loss to Croatia at the 2022 World Cup.
“We want Brazil to come out on top and we will continue to work hard and prepare for the World Cup (qualifiers),” Endrick said.
“We know these are difficult times, but we hope that we will have the support of all Brazilians.”
(Reporting by Rohit Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan and Michael Perry)
