Concacaf Nations League: Recap

The Concacaf Nations League Semi-finals kicked off on Thursday, March 21st. The United States played Jamaica, while Mexico faced Panama. AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, played host to both matches and will host the final on Sunday, March 24th.

United States vs. Jamaica

The Stars and Stripes struggled to break down the “Reggae Boyz” in a primarily uncomfortable 3-1 victory deep in the heart of Texas. 30 seconds into the game, Jamaica midfielder Bobby De Cordova-Reid floated a cross to the back post, headed home by defender Greg Leigh. Jamaica thus had a 1-0 lead, ready to pull off an upset. The Jamaicans defended well, allowing the U.S. to have 78% of the possession but preventing them from creating quality shooting opportunities. Jamaica goalkeeper Andre Blake only had to make one save in the first half of a Christian Pulisic effort in the last minute of the first half.

The second half was similarly tight for the Americans as they pushed to tie the game. While they had a few shots on target, none troubled Blake. Then, in the last minute of regular time, Pulisic served a corner that found the head of defender Miles Robinson. Robinson deflected the header onto the head of Jamaica forward Corey Burke, who sent the ball into the back of his net.

The Americans celebrated effusively by the corner flag, and the game went to extra time with the U.S. riding a vital swing in momentum. This swing peaked six minutes into the first period of extra time when U.S midfielder Gio Reyna picked up a loose ball and served a precise pass to forward Haji Wright, who scored a left-footed shot from inside the box to make the score 2-1.

Later in the 109th minute, Reyna and Wright would again combine to seal the game. Reyna won a 50-50 in midfield before quickly playing a defense-splitting pass to Wright. Wright turned quickly, blasting a right-footed shot in the top corner to put the game to bed at 3-1.

Mexico vs. Panama

El Tri played very well against Los Canaleros, earning a comfortable 3-0 victory. Although Mexico had only six shots to Panama’s 18, all of Mexico’s shots were on target, while Panama had only five on target. 

Mexico’s effectiveness paid dividends in the first half’s final minutes when they scored twice quickly. Midfielder Edson Álvarez scored a simple header in the 40th minute off a long cross from midfielder Luis Chávez, giving Mexico a 1-0 lead.

Shortly after that, forward Julián Quiñones doubled Mexico’s lead after dribbling between two defenders to place a right-footed shot past Panamanian goalkeeper Orlando Mosquera. While he benefited from a lucky bounce in the move, he still did well in his shot placement.

Mexico would eventually seal the game in the 67th minute when Orbelin Pineda ran in behind the Panamanian defense before chipping Mosquera to make the score 3-0.

Further coverage on the Concacaf Nations League will be coming soon.

Be sure to stay tuned to our wide ranging esports and sports coverage as well.