Soccer-US not taking Guatemala lightly ahead of Gold Cup semis, says Adams

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(Reuters) -Seven-times CONCACAF Gold Cup champions the United States will not take Wednesday’s semi-final against Guatemala lightly despite being overwhelming favourites, midfielder Tyler Adams said.

Guatemala, ranked number 106 in the world, have reached the semis of the tournament for the first time since 1996 after shocking former winners Canada 6-5 on penalties, while 16th ranked U.S. advanced for the 13th successive time.

“We know how strong Guatemala is. There’s a reason that they’re in the semi-final, so we can’t take that for granted the opportunity to play them,” Adams told reporters on Tuesday.

Adams also said it would be strange to play against Rubio Rubin, who represented the U.S. at youth level before switching allegiance to Guatemala.

Rubin scored the equaliser against Canada in a match that ended 1-1 before going to a shootout.

“It’s always a little bit strange obviously when you play with them in the youth national team and then now, they’re playing for Guatemala, and you’re playing against them in a Gold Cup, but it’ll be a really unique experience,” Adams said.

“He’s done really well for himself so it’ll be exciting to play against him.”

The U.S. also needed a shootout to reach the last four after drawing 2-2 with Costa Rica, and manager Mauricio Pochettino took pride in their team spirit.

“That is what we want. That is how we feel, how we want to represent our country, and we want to fight for our flag and for our shirt,” the Argentine said.

(Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)