By Melody Miller
Christian Pulisic converted a penalty kick in the 114th minute, backup goalkeeper Ethan Horvath stopped Andres Guardado’s penalty kick in the 124th and the United States beat Mexico 3-2 in a final of the first CONCACAF Nations League that turned on three video reviews.
In a testy match, Giovanni Reyna, who scored the first U.S. goal, left the field when it appeared to be hit on the face by an object thrown from the stands following Pulisic’s goal.
The match was also halted for about three minutes during second-half stoppage time because of discriminatory chants at Empower Field in Denver.
Pulisic, fresh off of winning the Champions League with Chelsea on May 29, cut inside the penalty area and was pulled down by Carlos Salcedo in the 108th minute.
“I’m so proud of this group, we needed everyone today and it was a phenomenal performance,” Pulisic said after the match.
Panamanian referee John Pitti did not initially signal a penalty but consulted a video review and then pointed to the spot. Mexico coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino appeared to receive a red card for putting a hand on an official during the review and Hirving Lozano was given a yellow card for arguing after the decision.
