Venezuela beats Mexico and qualifies for the quarterfinals of the Copa América

A legendary performance by goalkeeper Rafael Romo earned a heroic Venezuela a 1-0 victory over Mexico on Wednesday, securing an early qualification for the quarterfinals of the Copa América.

At SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, it was Salomón Rondón who scored the winning goal with a penalty in the 57th minute, but the standout figure for the "Vinotinto" was clearly Romo, with a series of incredible saves, including a penalty save in the 87th minute.

The team led by Argentine Fernando Batista, which had already beaten Ecuador (2-1), took the lead after a strong start in the second half and, once ahead, managed to endure the pressure, with intense teamwork and the unbeatable Romo at the back.

With six points, the Venezuelans, who had Jhonder Cádiz (Famalicão) come on from the 82nd minute, are in the quarterfinals, but have not yet secured first place. They need just one point against the already eliminated Jamaica, who have zero points, while Mexico, competing for second place with Ecuador, is obliged to win.

After the narrow victory against Jamaica (1-0), Mexico started more offensively, playing closer to the opponent's goal, but had their first major opportunity in the 19th minute, with Santiago Jiménez breaking free behind the defense and receiving the ball on his chest, but missing the shot.

Despite being more defensive, Venezuela also remained threatening and had the best chance of the first half in the 34th minute, with Savarino, from the right, launching Rondón, who hit the left post.

The second half began with the Venezuelans taking control and creating several dangerous chances. Soteldo fired a shot that Julio González saved instinctively in the 50th minute, and Rondón narrowly missed the left post in the 53rd minute.

The persistence of the "Vinotinto" eventually paid off: in the 55th minute, Quiñonez fouled Aramburu in the box, and the referee awarded a penalty. In the 57th minute, Rondón converted it with class, sending González to the left and the ball to the right.At a disadvantage, Mexico launched an attack and began creating dangerous situations, the first with a cross from Quiñonez in the 69th minute, and later, in the 80th minute, with Luis Chávez being thwarted by a brave tackle from Aramburu.

In the final part of the match, the "Aztecs" camped in the Venezuelan area, and in the 83rd minute, a shot from Porto's Jorge Sánchez, which was clearly going wide, hit Navarro's hand. After reviewing the footage, the referee awarded another penalty.

Coming on in the 78th minute as Jaime Lozano's last gamble, Orbelín Pineda was called to take the penalty in the 87th minute, but his shot towards the right post was stopped by a great dive from Romo, who tipped it away with his right hand.

In stoppage time, Mexico still had two good chances to equalize, both from Guillermo Martínez, but Romo and a solid Venezuelan defense secured the victory and qualification for the Copa América quarterfinals.