After four weeks of thrills, spills, high drama, and spectacular goals, the CONCACAF Gold Cup final is here as Mexico and USA prepare to play their last hand in Las Vegas.
The pre-tournament CONCACAF 2021 betting odds predicted a Mexico vs USA final and so it is. The two favourites meet at the Allegiant Stadium on Sunday night when the champions will be crowned.
The Stars and Stripes came through a tough semi-final against Qatar with a 1-0 score line thanks in large part to goalkeeper Matt Turner who put in a big performance to keep the in-form Qatari attackers at bay.
Meanwhile, El Tri came through a dramatic clash with Canada to make the last two.
So with one game to play, let’s take a look at some of the highlights from the last month of football in the USA.
Trinidad’s rearguard action against Mexico
The opening match of the competition may not feature heavily in the CONCACAF 2021 highlights package, but it’s a game Trinidad keeper Marvin Phillips will never forget.
We fully expected tournament favourites Mexico to rip the Trinidad and Tobago team apart but the underdogs’ rearguard had other plans.
As El Tri fired 20 shots in on goal, when they managed to beat the Trinidad back four, keeper Phillips was an unbeatable last line of defence.
Gerard Martino’s Mexico are the highest-ranked side in the competition at 11th in the world, but the 103rd-ranked Trinidad just wouldn’t give in. Jesse Williams had their only shot of the game and imagine if that had gone in!
Qatar and Panama’s second-half blitz
In stark contrast, there were goals galore when eventual semi-finalists Qatar faced Panama in Houston for a Group D tie. After a goalless first half, the two sides traded blow-for-blow before eventually settling on a 3-3 draw.
Following a long delay due to thunderstorms, Qatar’s first ever Gold Cup goal came in the 48th minute when striker Akram Afif broke the deadlock after meeting a knockdown from Pedro Miguel and firing home from close range.
Panama hit back within three minutes when Rolando Blackburn headed in an inch perfect cross delivered by Yoel Barcenas, but the Panamanians were level for just two minutes.
Almoez Ali restored Qatar’s lead with a well-hit cross shot into the bottom left corner. And then five minutes later, Blackburn bagged his second goal in identical fashion to his first, converting another pinpoint delivery from Barcenas.
The drama continued at break-neck pace and when Afif was felled in the penalty area and Hassan Al-Haydos made it 3-2 to Qatar with a Panenka penalty conversion.
We were beginning to think Qatar had won it when we went 16 minutes without a goal and approached the last 10, but their opponents just wouldn’t lie down.
And when the Qatar defence buckled under the pressure, Panama won a penalty of their own. Eric Davis ignored Al-Haydos’ example and smashed his spot-kick into the top corner to make it 3-3.
Bobby Reid’s stunner for Jamaica
For the goal of the tournament, we’ve gone for Jamaica’s second in an entertaining 2-0 victory over Suriname.
The Reggae Boys had gone 1-0 up early in the game and Suriname were trying to get a foothold when Reid put an end to any thoughts of a revival.
With seemingly little danger, the ball dropped at the Fulham striker’s feet some 25 yards out and he hit the sweetest first time volley, which whistled past the Suriname keeper and into the net.
Herrera’s 99th minute goal in the semi-final
We started with El Tri and that’s where we’ll finish. Tournament favourites Mexico were pushed all the way by Canada in a dramatic semi-final before finally triumphing 2-1 when Hector Herrera scored a 99th minute winner.
The game had been delayed for 14 minutes due to offencive chanting in the stands when the score stood at 1-1.
Orbelin Pineda had given Mexico a halftime lead with a spot-kick, before Tajon Buchanan levelled for Canada.
El Tri were awarded another penalty but Carlos Salcedo saw his effort saved by the excellent Maxime Crepeau. And then after play resumed, both teams went for the winner.
But it was Mexico who made the final when Herrera won it deep into stoppage time. The Atletico Madrid midfielder met Rodolfo Pizarro’s cross on the edge of the penalty area and rifled home a low winner.
The SBOTOP team predicted a Mexico vs USA final and the best two teams have made it. Keep it here to see if El Tri can go all the way for a record ninth Gold Cup or if the USA can make it a magnificent seven.
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