Thursday, July 23, 2009

Team USA and Mexico Reach Gold Cup Final

The semifinal round of the CONCACAF Gold Cup was played with a doubleheader Thursday night in Chicago.

In the opener, Clarence Goodson (45') and Kenny Cooper (90') provided the end-of-half goals as the United States downed Honduras 2-0 to reach the final for the third time. The Americans are the two-time defending champions.

In a tense nightcap, Guillermo Franco scored at 88 minutes to put Mexico up 1-0, only to see Froylan Ledezma equalize in stoppage time (90'+3). 30 scoreless overtime minutes followed. Guillermo Franco, Giovani Dos Santos, Gerardo Torrado, Efrain Juarez, and Carlos Vela all converted their penalty kicks as El Tri took the shootout 5-3 and advanced to the final.

The United States will face Mexico in the Gold Cup final on Sunday at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

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