There was a heavy Leeds United involvement in USA’s Copa America clash with Uruguay during the early hours of this morning.
The two nations were going head-to-head in their final group stage matches of the tournament in what was a crucial match for the States to keep their hopes alive.
Uruguay had already sealed their qualification in first place after comfortably winning their opening two games against Panama and Bolivia, while scoring eight goals in the process.
USA, meanwhile, were on the end of a shock 2-1 defeat to Panama in their second match and knew that only a win against Marcelo Bielsa‘s Uruguay would be enough to progress to the last eight.
Former Leeds midfielders Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie were both in USA’s starting XI on the night, while Brenden Aaronson, who is returning to Elland Road, was on the bench.
Bielsa goes head-to-head against Aaronson’s USA for Uruguay
Given they were already first in the group, you could have forgiven Bielsa for naming a slightly weakened side in the game last night.
However, as Leeds fans are well aware, that is not Bielsa. He is all about integrity and so Uruguay picked their strongest available starting XI which included all of their big-name stars.
Having beaten both Brazil and Argentina during in World Cup qualifying under Bielsa, Uruguay have a genuine chance of going all the way this summer, but for USA, it is the end of the road.
Thanks to a goal from Mathias Olivera, Uruguay came out on top with a 1-0 win and after Panama’s win over Bolivia, USA were knocked out in their own backyard.
Considering how all of their team are now playing in Europe’s top five leagues, serious questions will be asked of USA’s performance in the tournament.
Even Jesse Marsch’s Canada have managed to progress further than they have, after finishing second in a group that also consisted of Argentina.
Aaronson now set for earlier Leeds return
Aaronson was an unused substitute in the game last night meaning he was unable to test himself against Bielsa, a manager who wanted to sign him in January 2022.
It also means Aaronson has played just eight minutes of football across the entire competition, which he will be disappointed with after ending the season well at Union Berlin.
However, it will also see Aaronson returning to Leeds earlier than he would have done if USA had progressed deeper into the tournament.
Leeds are returning for pre-season this week and Aaronson will probably get around two weeks to rest and recover before heading back to Thorp Arch.
