Mexico and Canada are coming off big wins in their respective Gold Cup openers.
El Tri has their first true Gold Cup test against Canada in their second group stage match in Denver, Colorado, tonight. Of course, “test” is a relative term, especially when it comes to Concacaf. Team Mexico is No. 18 in the FIFA World Cup rankings (tops in Concacaf), while Canada is ranked No. 78.
Mexico demonstrated why they are the top team in the region with an easy 7-0 win over Cuba in its Group A opener. Coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino is now a perfect 5 wins from 5 games since taking over in January. El Tri has scored 20 goals in those five games, demonstrating a powerful offense.
Although Martino will no doubt tinker with his line-up during the group stage to keep his players fresh (3 games in 9 days), the main focus will be to develop chemistry up front where Raul Jimenez and Uriel Antuna looked potent against Cuba. Jimenez scored twice and Antuna had a hat trick, but the two have not played together often.
Canada is not a team that can be easily disregarded in the Gold Cup. Their star player is striker Lucas Cavallini who scored 5 goals for Puebla in the Clausura 2019. Winger Alphonso Davis, 18, plays for Bayern Munich. Davis became Canada’s youngest debutante (16 years, 7 months) and the youngest to score in the Gold Cup (in 2017). Another teen forward, Jonathan David,19, plays with Belgian club Gent and he scored two of Canada’s four goals against Martinique in their group opener.
Mexico poses Canada’s biggest challenge and the above players will have to be on the top of their games. Mexico owns a 3-0-1 record against Canada in previous Gold Cup tournaments.
Prediction
Canada is the underdog, but they are hungry and eager to make a statement in the Gold Cup tournament. Both teams will go toe-to-toe for 90 minutes in what could be an explosive game, but Mexico’s experience gives them an advantage.