MIAMI, Florida – In the last five years, there has been no shortage of big stage games between El Salvador and Jamaica, and the two teams will meet once again on Thursday in a high-stakes affair in Concacaf World Cup Qualifying for Qatar 2022 at the National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica.

A look at the numbers shows that Jamaica will certainly fancy their chances at securing a positive result, considering the results of the last 30 years between the two countries on Jamaican soil.

Overall, the Jamaica lead the series with a 10W-9D-6L record, outscoring El Salvador 26-17.

Their last three home qualifiers against El Salvador have also produced good results. Jamaica notched 1-0 wins in both qualifying for France 1998 and South Korea/Japan 2002 before playing to a 0-0 draw in WCQ for Germany 2006, making it three games in a row in which El Salvador have not scored away to Jamaica in qualifying.

Their first meeting in this Final Round for Qatar 2022 yielded a 1-1 final in San Salvador, so El Salvador would like nothing better than to earn their first win on Jamaica soil since November 22, 1992 when a Milton Melendez brace gave El Salvador a 2-0 win in qualifying for USA 1994. Those goals from Melendez also represent the last time El Salvador scored in Jamaica in qualifying.

In addition to their 1-1 draw last November, the two sides also squared off in the 2017 and 2019 Concacaf Gold Cups, plus 2019-20 Concacaf Nations League Qualifying, making Thursday’s affair the fifth competitive match between the two sides since the 2017 Gold Cup.

Both Gold Cup matches ended in draws, a 1-1 final in the group stage in 2017, followed by a scoreless draw in the 2019 group stage, while El Salvador captured a 2-0 win in CNL Qualifying in San Salvador in March 2019.

And if any extra proof was needed to show how thin the margins are when Jamaica and El Salvador meet, their head-to-head record in Concacaf WCQ says it all. In nine matches, each side has three wins, three draws, three losses, with nine goals scored and nine allowed.

Like always, both nations can turn to top goalkeepers to keep them in matches. Jamaica boast 2017 Gold Cup Golden Glove winner Andre Blake, who leads the Final Round in saves with 47, while El Salvador No.1 Mario Gonzalez is second on that list with 30 saves.

El Salvador’s hopes of reaching the inter-confederation playoff remain alive, and in order to keep the World Cup dream intact, this new generation of players will have to try to secure a long-awaited win on Jamaican soil.