Copa America: Colombia Edges USA 1-0 for Third Place Medal

The USMNT had several dangerous opportunities early on, but failed to put any shots on target in the first half.

Colombia opened the scoring in the 32 minute with a scrappy Carlos Bacca goal.

James Rodriguez chipped a ball into the box to Santiago Arias who sent a header across the face of goal. A sliding Bacca appeared to get the faintest of touches on the ball and Tim Howard couldn't keep it out of the net.

While possession was relatively even, Colombia was clearly the better of the two teams with two shots on target compared to zero for USMNT.

As soon as the second half kicked off the action was end to end.

In the 50th minute, Clint Dempsey hit a great free kick from about 25 yards out. A full extension save from David Ospina kept Dempsey's strike out of the net.

In the 61st minute, Colombia looked set to double its lead, but Juan Cuadrado's shot from outside the box hit the crossbar.

The U.S. countered quickly, and a minute later Bobby Wood fired a shot off of the post.

The USMNT and Colombia continued to trade shots throughout the rest of the half, although neither team could find the back of the net.

Darlington Nagbe and Christian Pulisic entered the match in the 74th and 81st minutes, but neither could make a real difference.

In the 92^nd, Michael Orozco lost his cool after being fouled. He put both his hands on the face of Santiago Arias and was promptly red-carded. Arias was booked for fouling Orozco and then received his second yellow a minute later for arguing.

Despite several chances, the U.S. couldn't find the back of the net. Colombia claimed the third-place medal, edging the U.S. 1-0.

3 Thoughts

U.S. Ends the Tournament With a Loss

The U.S. concluded its tournament run with back-to-back disappointing losses. Fourth place is a respectable result, although the losses to Argentina and Colombia were unfortunate. In both matches the USMNT should have played better.

These losses will detract from USMNT's good work and cause fans to ask questions about whether Klinsmann is the right man for the job.

Bobby Wood's Time Is Now

Jozy Altidore's unfortunate injury problems have given Bobby Wood a golden opportunity. Wood has made the most of this chance as he has consistently been one of the better USMNT players in this tournament.

Wood was unlucky not to score tonight with several good shots. His work off of the ball was excellent and he makes great runs. These runs helped to create vital space for Dempsey and other U.S. attackers.

U.S. Needs to Consistently Play High-Level Opponents

This tournament was a great experience for the USMNT. These games provided a good indicator of where the U.S. stands in world soccer. I would argue that the U.S. is a top 20 team, but the team needs to play opponents outside of CONCACAF in order to improve.

Hopefully the USMNT is invited to future Copa America's, because playing teams like Saint Vincent and the Grenadines doesn't benefit the team.