MIAMI, Florida – This Friday at 7:00 PM ET, Concacaf will be airing a re-broadcast of two Concacaf Gold Cup classics, the first being the 2019 Gold Cup quarterfinal between Mexico and Costa Rica, followed by the 2017 Gold Cup semifinal between Jamaica and Mexico. Both matches will be shown on Concacaf’s Facebook and YouTube pages, plus the Concacaf App.
With an expanded field in the 2019 Gold Cup with four groups of four, the action was sure to be intense and competitive, and in Group A, Mexico and Canada each flexed their scoring muscles by scoring 13 and 12 goals, respectively. For Canada, it was a record haul of goals in a Gold Cup, led by the likes of FW and Golden Boot winner Jonathan David, who scored five goals in the group stage.
Drawn also with Martinique and Cuba, Mexico would take top spot in the group, thanks in part to a 3-1 win over Canada, but plenty of credit was deserving for Martinique, who finished with three points and went toe-to-toe with Mexico in their group stage finale, which ended 3-2.
History was made in Group B as the Gold Cup was played on Central American soil for the first time ever, as Costa Rica was the site for matchday one for the Ticos, Haiti, Bermuda and Nicaragua.
In the end, Haiti would finish first in the group on the strength of a comeback 2-1 win over Costa Rica in their group stage finale. The Ticos would settle for second place, while Gold Cup debutants Bermuda made history by earning their first Gold Cup victory over Nicaragua, 2-0, to secure a third-place finish.
The Caribbean also hosted a Gold Cup match for the first time ever when Jamaica, Honduras, El Salvador and Curacao kicked off action in Group C. Curacao achieved a first Gold Cup victory on matchday two when they downed Honduras 1-0, and that result propelled them to a 1-1 draw with Jamaica in the group finale to then earn a place in the quarterfinals alongside the Reggae Boyz.
The United States and Panama punched their tickets to the knockout stage out of Group D over the likes of Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago, but there was some solace for the Gold Cup debutants Golden Jaguars, who earned their first Gold Cup point in a 1-1 draw with Trinidad and Tobago.
There was no shortage of drama in the first two quarterfinals, beginning with Haiti rallying from a 2-0 halftime deficit to top Canada 3-2 to earn their first Gold Cup semifinal appearance. Later that night, Mexico and Costa Rica fought to a 1-1 draw after 90 minutes, with matters being settled in a penalty shootout won by El Tricolor, 5-4.
Top goalkeeping was on the docket in the other two quarterfinals as 2017 Gold Cup Golden Glove winner Andre Blake delivered a superb performance to lift Jamaica over Panama 1-0, while U.S. No. 1 Zack Steffen registered a clean sheet to help his side edge Curacao, 1-0.
