The 2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup is approaching its climax, with the group stage having wrapped up and only eight teams left standing.
The quarter-finals matches between Panama vs. Qatar and Mexico vs. Costa Rica are going to take place in Arlington, Texas, this Saturday, while the Guatemala vs. Jamaica and USA vs. Canada matches are on Sunday in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Because of the way the bracket is set up, there’s a huge possibility that USA and Mexico will clash in the final for the third consecutive time. Each nation has split their previous two meetings in the final with 1-0 scorelines, with USA winning in 2021 and Mexico winning in 2019.
Read more below as SBOTOP recaps how these countries made it this far.
Panama vs Qatar
Panama are one of the standout nations in the group stage, as they were unbeaten in three games. They defeated Costa Rica and Martinique with 2-1 scorelines, and then they were held to a 2-2 draw by El Salvador yesterday.
It should’ve been another 2-1 victory if it weren’t for Mayer Gil’s goal in added time, but a point was enough for them to hold on to their top position.
In contrast, Qatar had a sluggish start, losing to Haiti and failing to beat Honduras. The CONCACAF Gold Cup 2023 odds didn’t like their chances when they were up against Mexico, but the 2022 World Cup hosts managed to produce one of the most shocking CONCACAF Gold Cup 2023 results when they beat them 1-0.
Will lightning strike twice for Qatar? We’ll see. But bear in mind that Panama and Qatar actually had one of the best Gold Cup matches in recent memory when they shared the spoils in a six-goal thriller during the group stage in 2021.
Mexico vs Costa Rica
Speaking of Mexico, they had a smooth ride before the Qatar loss, beating Honduras 4-0 and Haiti 3-1. They are one of the favourites to win this tournament, so they’re expected to eliminate Costa Rica in the quarter-finals.
Despite not having Hirving Lozano and Raul Jimenez, Mexico can and should go deep because they have a strong squad with the likes of Santiago Gimenez, Orbelin Pineda, Luis Romo, Edson Alvarez, and the evergreen Guillermo Ochoa leading the way.
Costa Rica, meanwhile, actually almost missed out on the quarter-finals. They lost to Panama and drew 0-0 with El Salvador, so they badly needed their 6-4 win over Martinique last night.
It’s very unlikely that they’ll have another high-scoring game against Mexico, but at least they’ve shown that their aging roster still has something left in the tank.
Guatemala vs Jamaica
Guatemala finished on top of Group D with victories over Cuba and Guadeloupe and a goalless draw against Canada. They are looking to make the most of their run because they haven’t made it this far since 2011.
Rubio Rubin is their top scorer with two goals, which came against Guadeloupe in their 3-2 win. If he hadn’t scored those goals, they might have already been eliminated with Canada and Guadeloupe advancing.
Jamaica, on the other hand, had the same points as the Americans in Group A but were in second place due to goal difference. After holding USA to a 1-1 draw in the opener, they pummeled Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Kitts and Nevis with an aggregate tally of 9-1.
It feels like the Reggae Boyz should win this one, but we’ll never know because they look like the better squad on paper since they have a couple of Premier League-based talents such as Michail Antonio, Demarai Gray, Bobby Reid, and Di’Shon Bernard.
USA vs Canada
USA were the best team in the group stage, as they blasted Trinidad and Tobago and Saint Kitts and Nevis with a whopping aggregate tally of 12-0 after being held by Jamaica.
They are poised to repeat even without the likes of Weston McKennie, Christian Pulisic, Gio Reyna, Folarin Balogun, Tyler Adams, and Timothy Weah, with Jesus Ferreira, Brandon Vazquez, and Djordje Mihailovic spearheading the charge.
But if there’s one team who could beat the Americans, it’s the Canadians, especially with their history together.
Canada haven’t hit their top form, as they needed a final group stage match win against Cuba to make it here after drawing their first two games.
Like USA, Canada didn’t exactly bring their best team in this tournament, but they remain dangerous with the likes of Junior Hoilett, Jonathan Osorio, Lucas Cavallini, Liam Millar, and Jayden Nelson leading the way.
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