Matthew Hoppe scored his first international goal on a header in the 83rd minute and the United States beat Jamaica 1-0 Sunday night to reach the semifinals of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Hoppe, making his second international appearance, nodded home a cross from Cristian Roldan from just inside the 6-yard box, and the U.S. eliminated the 45th-ranked Reggae Boyz for the third straight Gold Cup.
The 20th-ranked U.S. will face Qatar, an invited guest ahead of its hosting next year’s World Cup, on Thursday in Austin, Texas. It will be the 11th consecutive Gold Cup semifinal for the Americans, who last won in 2017 when they beat Jamaica in the final. Goalkeeper Matt Turner had his third shutout in four matches.
U.S. Gregg Berhalter, using a mostly junior varsity roster, started just three players who see substantial playing time when first-choice players are on hand: Kellyn Acosta, Sebastian Lletget and Paul Arriola. Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie, Tyler Adams, Sergiño Dest, Zack Steffen and Josh Sargent were among the regulars who skipped the tournament for vacation followed by European preseasons.
