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AZTECA AMBUSH, ALMOST

Even before the U.S. men’s soccer team took the field Sunday to challenge Mexico in the Confederations Cup semifinals, the home crowd booed Old Glory when it flickered on one of the giant TV screens at Azteca Stadium.

When the game was over, though, it was clear that the Americans had gained the respect of the Mexican fans.

The U.S. lost 1-0 but forced the match into overtime, making Mexico’s fans nervous.

“To be honest, I was a little scared because the United States played well,” said Fausto Castaneda, 28, who was sporting a Mexican team jersey. “But we know that here, they cannot beat us.”

Indeed, Mexico has beaten the U.S. in 16 of their 17 meetings at Azteca, with one tie. The 0-0 tie came in November 1997, their last meeting at Azteca.

Overall, Mexico has outscored the Americans at home 66-12.

The Americans looked sluggish Sunday as the Mexicans took the ball to the goal again and again.

In the end, it was the near-flawless play of goalkeeper Kasey Keller that saved the U.S. team from a rout. Afterward, Keller characterized the game as “evenly fought.”

“They know they were in a difficult game, and they know they could have lost it,” he said. “It’s a local rival, and it’s a time when you have to rise to the occasion. It was my first time that I’ve actually played in Azteca, and it was a lot of fun.

“It’s just a shame we couldn’t get the goal instead of Mexico.”

About five minutes into sudden-death overtime, Cuauhtemoc Blanco scored the winning goal, his fifth of the tournament. Blanco picked up a rebound of his own shot from about 4 yards out and beat Keller.

“We knew that the United States (has) a great team,” Blanco said, “and that they were not going to make things easy for us.”

Mexico plays Brazil for the title Wednesday. Brazil humiliated Saudi Arabia 8-2 in the other semifinal game in Guadalajara.

The U.S., meanwhile, plays Saudi Arabia for third place Tuesday.

After an embarrassing performance in the 1998 World Cup in France, the U.S. team has found new life under coach Bruce Arena. The team stunned European champion Germany 2-0 Friday night in Guadalajara. Earlier, the U.S. defeated New Zealand 1-0 and registered a respectable 1-0 loss to Brazil, a perennial powerhouse.

On Saturday, the team traveled to Mexico City for the semifinal match against Mexico. Apparently, the grueling schedule and lack of rest affected the Americans.

After the game, Arena complained about the schedule, calling it “poorly designed.”

Arena, however, said he was proud of the way his team had played, and that he had told his players to go after third place.

“It was going to be one play, obviously,” Arena said, in assessing his team’s performance, “and we had our chances.”

In this soccer-obsessed country, stadium officials normally have to turn away people at the gate. But perhaps because Mexico has turned in some lackluster performances in the tournament, the crowd was about 30,000 short of filling the 110,000-seat Azteca, where it can get so loud that conversation is drowned out.

Carlos Chavez, 31, who was at the game with his 5-year-old son, said he felt “immense happiness.”

“The players never gave up,” he said. “They gave their hearts. They tried.

“And that’s what is important.”