U.S. upset goes south

~ Brazil rallies for a 3-2 win in the finals of the Confederations Cup.

JOHANNESBURG -- Clint Dempsey sobbed as the Americans walked up to get their second-place medals, unable to hide the pain and the disappointment any longer.

The euphoria of knocking off Spain last week dissolved Sunday in the Confederations Cup final when Brazil unleashed its "Beautiful Game."

After dominating the five-time World Cup champions in the first half, the Americans were powerless as Brazil scored three goals in the final 45 minutes to rally for a 3-2 win.

"We're at the point where we don't want respect, we want to win," said Landon Donovan, whose goal in the 27th minute gave the United States a 2-0 lead. "There's no guarantee we ever get back to a final game like this, so it's disappointing."

Luis Fabiano scored twice for Brazil, and Lucio added the third in the 84th minute to give Brazil its second straight Confederations Cup title and third overall. The American men fell short in their first final of a FIFA tournament, but the experience was invaluable.

Almost sure to qualify for next year's World Cup, also in South Africa, the Americans certainly saw the benefits of playing this game. What hurt was the way they lost it.

"We continue to try and move ourselves forward, and playing these kind of games only helps," U.S. coach Bob Bradley said. "But it still feels pretty lousy to let this one get away."

In the third-place match, Spain fought back to beat host South Africa 3-2 after extra time in Rustenburg.

The United States has beaten Brazil once in 15 games, and it was just 10 days ago that the Brazilians hung a 3-0 rout on the Americans in group play of the tournament that had the critics piling on and some calling for Bradley's job.

In the first 45 minutes Sunday, though, it was Brazil that looked like the beaten team. Its usually fluid offense created few opportunities and was constantly stymied by the U.S. defense and goalkeeper Tim Howard. Meanwhile, the Americans were relentless in their attack on a nervous-looking Brazil defense.

Just 10 minutes into the game, Jonathan Spector sprinted down the right side and sent a low cross into the area. Dempsey raised his right leg and put just enough of a touch on the ball to alter the direction and send it past a diving Julio Cesar.

Donovan then got possession at his own end, ran up the middle, passed to Charlie Davies and then reclaimed the ball from his teammate before beating Julio Cesar.