As holders of the CONCACAF Gold Cup and the nation with the most tournament wins, with eight, Mexico are the team to beat at the 2021 competition, which kicks off in earnest this week.
They will face stiff competition from the USA, the team in pursuit with six CONCACAF wins, but El Tri should have enough, in terms of squad depth and quality, to have a great chance of stretching that lead.
At 11th in the FIFA World Rankings, Mexico are the best team in the competition, ahead of 20th-placed USA, Jamaica at 45th and Costa Rica at 50th.
The Gold Cup Preliminary Round concludes on 6th July when the full list of teams for the Group Stages will be completed and that’s when Mexico enter the arena.
Head coach
Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino is the man tasked with leading El Tri to glory and he certainly has the pedigree, as former head coach of La Liga giants FC Barcelona in the 2013/14 season, when the Blaugrana finished as runners up in both La Liga and Copa del Rey.
As a player, he made a record 505 matches for Newell’s Old Boys and was a fan favourite, selected in a poll as the best player in the club’s history. After his stint at the Camp Nou, he went on to manage Argentina and came close to ending the Albiceleste’s trophy drought, when they lost the 2015 Copa America final on penalties to Chile.
After a season in the MLS as boss of Atlanta United, Tata returned to international duties with Mexico in January 2019, and he has since guided them on a run of 25 wins, two draws and three losses, an 83.33 win percentage.
Players
Tata has plenty of quality in his squad and Napoli’s 25-year-old striker Hirving Lozano could be the man to watch.
With 14 international goals from 47 appearances already to his name, a good return for a player often deployed as a winger, Lozano has also enjoyed success at Napoli this past season. He’s a right-footed player with a keen eye for goal and a fierce shot on him, but it is his versatility that makes him so useful to a head coach. He can play on the left, the right or as a central striker, and often has most success drifting in from the left to unleash a shot.
Lozano’s strike partner Jesus Corona can also play wide right or in a central role while, just behind the front two, Atletico Madrid’s Hector Herrera has bags of experience. He’s a box-to-box midfielder who can break up play and support the attack, and will operate alongside 25-year-old Cruz star Orbelin Pineda, a midfield playmaker who can certainly pick a pass.
Right wing-back Luis Rodriguez will also support the front men and he too has a powerful shot in his locker.
Tactics
Back in March, Mexico went down to a rare 1-0 defeat at the hands of Wales in an international friendly which they bossed pretty much from start to finish but they could not find the killer touch. Since then they have won four drawn two and lost one game (against USA in the Nations League) and will arrive at the Gold Cup on the back of two big wins, 3-0 against Panama and 4-0 against Nigeria.
El Tri are comfortable in possession and the coach likes to play a high pressing role which, when deployed successfully, results in attacking play high up the pitch. With two fluid strikers, Mexico can wreak havoc as their recent opponents have discovered.
Route to success
Mexico kick off their campaign on 10th July with a match against the winners of Preliminary Group C at Arlington, and the CONCACAF Gold Cup 2021 betting odds suggest they will go all the way to the final at the Las Vegas Allegiant Stadium on August 1st.
Here at SBOTOP we’ll provide the up-to-date CONCACAF Gold Cup 2021 news, as it happens, as El Tri complete their group matches, which also include clashes with El Salvador and Curacao, who meet on the opening day. The winners of each group will head to Texas for the semi-finals, hosted in Houston and Austin, before the showcase final takes place in Vegas, just over three weeks from now.
Which teams will pose the biggest threats? Well, Costa Rica and Honduras have both held El Tri to a draw recently, while Jamaica will be strong, and then there’s the USA. But with some key players missing, notably Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic, the Stars and Stripes may not be as strong as Mexico, and that’s what Tata is counting on!
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