Canada, Uruguay criticise Copa organizers ahead of third-place clash

Canada and Uruguay have differing outlooks about how the Copa America has gone as they clash in the third-place match on Saturday in Charlotte.

In their first-ever Copa America, Canada finished second in Group A and defeated Venezuela in the quarter-finals before falling 2-0 to Argentina in the semis. Both of Canada's setbacks in the tournament came against Argentina.

Their strong showing has got Canada, an ice hockey-loving nation, showing a growing interest in its soccer squad.

"We want to inspire the nation," Canada coach Jesse Marsch said. "We want to develop the sport in the country.

"We want people to remember this as a moment in time that changed the trajectory of what this sport is in Canada."

Uruguay's bid for a record 16th Copa America crown ended when they fell 1-0 to Colombia in Wednesday's semi-final, also held in Charlotte.

Uruguay won all three Group C matches by an aggregate 9-1 score and then beat Brazil on penalties in the quarter-finals. But their dominance ended against Colombia despite them having a man-advantage for the entire second half.

"We didn't make the most of the moments during the first half when we could have equalised," Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa said. "In the second half, we should have created more danger."

After the match some Uruguay players went into the crowd and fought with Colombian fans.

South American soccer federation and Copa America organisers CONMEBOL have opened an investigation.

When it was suggested to Bielsa that sanctions could be forthcoming for Uruguay, the 68-year-old became agitated.

"The players reacted like any other human being would," Bielsa said. "If you see that there's a process to keep what happened from happening, if you see that if what happened happens anyway,