Clint Dempsey scores, adds assist as US beats Ecuador 2-1 in Copa quarterfinals in Seattle

USMNT head coach Jurgen Klinsmann has been knocked for his static lineup choices in the Copa America Centenario, but once again decision was vindicated by the United States’ 2-1 win over Ecuador at CenturyLink Field on Thursday night in the quarterfinals.

Klinsmann had to do a little reshuffling with thanks to Seattle native DeAndre Yedlin’s suspension. Because of that, Matt Besler slotted in at left-back for the US, pushing Fabian Johnson (who had been playing left-back all tournament) to right-back. The rest of the lineup stayed the same, and Sounders star Clint Dempsey retained his spot up top.

The first half started a bit slowly, with both teams refusing to give up any space for the opening 15 or so minutes. Bobby Wood in particular looked great for the US, latching onto through balls and beating defenders at every opportunity. One such chance saw him dribble into the box, retaining the ball but not finding any real openings to shoot. He then passed to Jermaine Jones, who whipped in an excellent cross to the top of the box, where Dempsey met the ball with a powerful header that flew past Ecuador keeper Dominguez and into the net.

Aside from far too many fouls on in-form US defender John Brooks and an excellent chance squandered by Alejandro Bedoya, the rest of the half was fairly uneventful and ended at 1-0 in the USA’s favor.

The second half started pretty slowly, but things picked up quickly as a very dangerous tackle on Bedoya by Ecuador’s Antonio Valencia led to some shoving by both teams. Jones took it a step further and attempted to slap an Ecuador player in the face, which led to a straight red card for the midfielder. Valencia was also sent off for his tackle on Bedoya, so both teams would have to finish with 10 players apiece.

Just 10 or so minutes later, Wood found Dempsey into the box, where the forward’s pass towards the far post was poked in by Gyasi Zardes to make it 2-0 to the Americans.

That scoreline didn’t last too long; Michael Arroyo drilled one in for Ecuador after some excellent set piece work near the outside of the box. Ecuador continued to knock at the door after its goal, as the USA did its best to hold on to the lead. After a particularly testy foul by Ecuador, coach Gustavo Quinteros angrily threw a water bottle onto the pitch and was subsequently ejected.

Excellent defensive work allowed the USMNT to hold onto the 2-1 lead and head to the Copa America semifinals.

Man of the match: Dempsey, for his work on both goals. He’s now tied for most goals in the tournament.

Honorable mention: The Seattle crowd showed just what all the hype was about. Expect US Soccer to keep this in mind in the coming years.

Turning point: The final whistle. This match was on edge for the full 90 minutes. Nothing was certain until the whistle was blown.

One reason to worry: The US will be without Jones, Bedoya and Wood for the semifinals. Having played nearly the entire tournament with the same lineup, this is very worrisome.

One reason to relax: Dempsey is playing some of his best soccer in years, and I fully expect him to light it up in the semis.

Spenser Davis is a soccer writer who also covers the Sounders for 710Sports.com and Sounder at Heart.