Colombia Drops U.S. For Third

Colombia trounced the United States 4-1 Saturday to take third place in the Copa America soccer tournament, avenging its defeat at the hands of the Americans in the 1994 World Cup.

Colombia got goals from Luis Quinonez in the 31st minute, Carlos Valderrama in the 38th, Faustino Asprilla in the 50th and Freddy Rincon in the 76th.

A penalty kick by Joe-Max Moore in the 52nd minute was the lone American score.

U.S. coach Steve Sampson attributed the loss to “exhaustion after the gigantic match against Brazil,” referring to the 1-0 loss Friday in the semifinals.

Sampson made a number of changes, trying out players who had not previously appeared in the tournament. Among them was Jovan Kirovski, who replaced injured striker Eric Wynalda.

“We fielded a lot of substitutes because of injuries, including Wynalda and Thomas Dooley,” Sampson said. “With our full team the result might have been different.”

Midfielder Tab Ramos was bitten by a spider, and the medicine he took caused an allergic reaction, Sampson said.

Ramos, who came on in the 37th minute, said “we were climbing step by step and hoping to reach the finals, but we stumbled against Brazil and our motivation to play for third place was not as high as in previous games.”

U.S. backs Paul Caligiuri and Mike Lapper failed to get a grip on the skillful Colombian midfield of Valderrama and Rincon with their great passes to Quinones and Asprilla.

Quinones scored from a pass by Asprilla. Then Valderrama made it 2-0, scoring over the head of goalie Kasey Keller from a pass by Quinones.

In the 52nd minute, a free kick by Rene Higuita hit the crossbar, and Asprilla scored on the rebound.

A minute later, a penalty kick by Moore narrowed the score to 3-1.

But the Colombians continued to attack the uncoordinated American defense, and Rincon capped the scoring from in close.

Sampson said he hoped to continue as coach of the team, but would support any decision made by U.S. League president Alan Rothenberg, “even if he chooses a foreign coach.”

Sampson said U.S. soccer needed more players with international experience to continue to grow. Turning to star Valderrama, he said, “I hope you will play in the American league, we need players like you.” Valderrama answered with a smile and a nod.