A late equaliser from Marco Pappa gave Guatemala a 1-1 draw against fancied U.S. on Tuesday in the semi-final round of the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying in Group A at Estadio Mateo Flores in Guatemala City.
Marco Pappa scored via a freekick in the 83rd minute after in-form forward Clint Dempsey had given the U.S. a 40th minute lead.
With the draw, the U.S. extended its unbeaten streak against Guatemala to 18 games (12-0-6). The USA completed a five-game stretch in 18 days in what head coach Jurgen Klinsmann said was a tournament, posting a 2-1-2 record during this span and moving to 5-1-2 for the year.
The US had 11 shots of which 3 were on target while Guatemala had 13 and 4. The match saw six players booked with four US players - Clarence Goodson, Michael Bradley, Maurice Edu and Fabian Johnson -- getting a yellow card.
USA stay top of Group A with four points on goal difference from Jamaica. The USA resumes World Cup qualifying with back-to-back matches against Jamaica on Sept 7 and 11.
In other games, Mexico beat El Salvador 2-1 at the Estadio Cuscatlan in San Salvador in a Group B match, keeping then top with six points, two more than Costa Rica.
In Group C, Canada had to settle for a 0-0 draw with Honduras. Canada, which have four points, are two behind Group leaders Panama.
"It's the difference between qualifying and getting knocked out," Canada forward Tosaint Ricketts told reporters after the match.
"Nobody's really happy with one point. I thought we controlled most of the game.
"The first half was really good -- the guys kept the ball, we kept our shape, we had some chances. I'm not happy with one point, but it's better than no points."
