The U.S. started out strong but couldn’t hold on as they fell in the Gold Cup final 4-2 to Mexico.
Pablo Barrera scored twice while Andres Guardado and Giovani Dos Santos also had tallies helping Mexico capture their second consecutive Gold Cup Championship.
“There’s no better moment than victory,” Mexico coach Jose Manuel de la Torre said. “Everything else is in the past now.”
Michael Bradley headered in Freddy Adu’s corner at the 8 minute mark while Landon Donovan scored in the 23rd minute mark giving the United States a 2-0 lead.
“You’re worried and you don’t want to become disorganized,” de la Torre said about falling behind early. “The United States was playing well. They surprised us with the first goal. We pushed too far up in the second goal. Fortunately, we were able to maintain our calm.”
U.S. head coach Bob Bradley hoped that this loss would be a learning experience for his team.
“We’re disappointed,” he added. “A game like this, when you’re together for a month, you feel like you’ve grown and put yourself in the final and let it get away … it’s an empty feeling.”
The win qualifies Mexico for the 2013 Confederations Cup, an international preview tournament ahead of the World Cup in Brazil the following year.
Source: Associated Press