Four players were sent off and the match between USA and Mexico was cut short by the referee after repeated homophobic chants on Thursday night.
The United States’ 3-0 victory over Mexico for a spot in Sunday’s Concacaf Nations League final against Canada will be remembered as much for the ugliness as for two goals by Christian Pulisic and one by Ricardo Pepi.
Americans Weston McKennie and Sergiño Dest were ejected by Salvadoran referee Iván Barton along with Mexicans César Montes and Gerardo Arteaga during the testy second half.
“These are rivalry games. These are derby games. Things like this happen across the world and in no way am I embarrassed,” BJ Callaghan said after his first game as US interim coach. “It comes from a good place. They care about each other so much in that locker room that they’re standing up for each other. Sometimes does it have an issue where we take a red card? Yeah, but when you know where it comes from, you can accept it and it’s a learning lesson for us.”
Play was halted in the 90th minute because of homophobic chants. When action resumed, 12 minutes of stoppage time were signaled. But fresh chanting caused Barton to end the match in the eighth minute of added time.
Fifa fined Mexico 100,000 Swiss francs ($108,000) in January for anti-gay chants by fans at two previous games.
“In terms of the chant, I want to make it very clear first and foremost, for our beliefs and our culture, it has no place in the game,” Callaghan said. “It has no place in our value system.”
McKennie and Dest are suspended for the final. Luca de la Torre and Joe Scally are possible replacements.
“It’s definitely a blow,” Tim Weah said. “It comes with the game. I know the red cards are definitely a bummer, but it happens. Aggressive match tonight.”
Striker Folarin Balogun made his debut after the 21-year-old decided to play for the US over England and Nigeria.
“The boys told me it was going to be intense, but I’m definitely still shocked by the events,” said Balogun, who at one point was shoved to the field. “I was just on the floor because I was in pain, but when I looked up I just saw so many people around and I knew my teammates were just trying to defend me,”
With their first three-goal victory over Mexico in 23 years, the US stretched their unbeaten streak against El Tri to six (three wins, three draws), matching the Americans’ longest, from 2011 through 2015.
The US went ahead when Gio Reyna poked the ball off Montes and then while prone, poked it forward off Jorge Sánchez. Pulisic burst behind the defenders, took a pair of touches and from the edge of the six-yard box slotted the ball past goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa.
McKennie started the move toward the second goal with a long pass down to Weah, who crossed. A sprinting Pulisic got behind Israel Reyes and Sánchez, stabbing the ball in with his left foot from six yards.
Montes was given a straight red card in the 69th for kicking Balogun while the two were challenging for the ball. McKennie was given a red card two minutes later for placing a hand on Sánchez’s neck during the ensuing arguing and shoving.
Pepi scored his seventh international goal, receiving a pass from Dest, taking a touch and rounding Ochoa. Dest and Arteaga were sent off in the 86th for shoving each other.
“There was moments on both teams that we could have handled better,” Callaghan said.
