2013 Gold Cup Day 1: You Were Expecting That, Right?

Canada is in deep trouble after a day one shock (TheStar.com)

The 2013 edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup opened yesterday in Pasadena, California at the Rose Bowl.   If God Cup Brackets were a thing, a few would probably already be be busted, much to the chagrin of a couple of familiar USA opponents.

Canada took to the pitch first against Caribbean side Martinique.  Martinique are a French territory, and are not FIFA eligible, so this is the highest tournament they can compete in, and they came to compete.  Canada, on the other hand, looked positively awful.  Their midfield looked absolutely puzzled most of the time and the defense looked largely inept, often clearing the ball right to a Martinique attacker.  For their part, Martinique looked solid both in the midfield and at the back, their main problem being that they couldn't finish despite outplaying Canada for much of the match.

Still in the end it looked like Canada might escape with an all important point.  The triple digit heat looked to be wearing on players from both sides as second half stoppage time dawned with the match still scoreless.  However, in the 93rd minute Fabrice Reuperne smacked a gorgeous shot from near the top of the box into the net, leaving the Canadian GK helpless and securing a famous win for Martinique, who previously only had one Gold Cup win on their resume.

The second game was a bit of as shocker too as Mexico fell to Panama.  Now, I don't think this was as big a shock as the Martinique vs Canada match.  Panama has shown that they have a capable side despite their deplorable diving and time wasting tactics.  The question was going to be if Mexico would actually show up after failing to impress both in the Hex and the Confederations Cup.

The answer was, not really.  Panama jumped on El Tri after earning a PK in the 7th minute, which Gabriel Torres just managed to slip by the Mexican 'keeper to give Panama the 1-0 lead.  Mexico would have it's own moments in the first half though, looking as good as they probably have in recent weeks.  They equalized in first half stoppage time when Marco Fabian brought down a Isreal Hernandez and crossed and clinically finished to tie the score going into the locker room.

Panama had the last laugh though when Torres scored again in the 48th minute.  He managed to just slot a ball inside the near post after a nice ball from Alberto Quintero to make it 2-1.  In the end, the Mexico attack degraded into bad passing and carelessness and they were not able to find a second equalizer, handing Panama the three points.

Next the group heads up to Seattle where Mexico will play Canada and Panama will take on Martinique.  The second matchday figures to be a must win for both Canada and Mexico.  Panama will get Blas Perez for their next match, and a win over Martinique would put them in the group driver's seat.

Gold Cup Semifinals

I really looked forward to getting home from work last night and watching the Gold Cup semis. Could the USA and Mexico set up their dream final, or would Panama or Honduras spoil the North American party?

The USA versus Panama was up first. I was interested to see if Panama would just bunker in like last time, but to their credit, they really didn't. They also played much higher along the back line than they did in the group stage, but the USA had a hard time taking advantage of that. Both teams had some chances, but a rather lackluster first half ended 0-0.

The USA put Landon Donovan in to start the second half. They were obviously looking for an influx of energy. Jozy Altidore wasn't going to be available for the rest of the tourney, and they needed more of an attacking presence, someone to open the game up. Landon helped, but Freddy Adu came in and really did the trick for the Americans. It was really great to see. Adu and Donovan teamed up to find Dempsey in the 77th and Clint slipped the only goal of the game in far post. Tim Howard made some great saves near the end to secure the 1-0 win.

Panama was without the services of Blaz Perez, who picked up a red card vs. El Salvador.

Mexico beat Honduras in a compelling 0-2 win that went into extra time. Despite dominating much of the game, El Tri was at a loss to find the back of the net. Honduras nearly scored right at the death, but the keeper kept it out. In extra time, De Nigris scored in the 93rd off of a corner and Chicharito added a goal in the 99th. The last 15 minutes were crap, as Honduras was basically trying to beat up Mexico, but El Tri held on for the 0-2 win after 120 minutes.

So the dream final it will be, the USA versus Mexico for all the Marbles.

Gold Cup Quarterfinals: Day Two

I was glad I was off work on Sunday so I could take in both Gold Cup matches from RFK. Still, I really wish FSC would have covered the rest of the matches throughout the tourney in English, not just the USA matches. I'd really rather watch those live games than EPL/Serie A reruns or WPS matches, but that's just me. I watched them on Univision and brushed up on my Spanish.

I was really wondering if the USA could pull it off against Jamaica. The Reggae Boyz had a ton of confidence and a ton of weapons coming in. Then the US announced that Landycakes was starting on the bench. Now, I don't begrudge Clint and Landon going to those weddings at all. Family is most important. However, it worried me that Landon wasn't gonna be on the pitch.

Luckily it worked out though. Gutsy call by Bob Bradley. Gotta give him credit. Had it not panned out he would have been a major goat. It had it's moments though. Howard made a great save on the Reggae Boyz early, that made the US nervous. Despite the fact that the USA played pretty well in the first half, it was goalless at the break.

They really fired it up in the second half though. In the 49th minute Jermaine Jones hammered a shot that took a deflection and went in to give the USA a 1-0 lead. For my money, it was an own goal, but a great strike nonetheless for Jones. Then in the 66th minute, Jermaine Taylor took a swipe at Jones on a counter. Jones got through it, but went to ground after a couple of steps and earned the Jamaican a red card. To me, it was a total flop. That was pretty much all she wrote for the Reggae Boyz. Dempsey scored a nice goal in the 80th to seal it up.

Bad news was that Jozy Altidore left the game with a hamstring injury. His status for the semis is still up in the air.

Now, who would the USA face in Houston? El Salvador or Panama? This one was another hard fought match that went to penalties. It shouldn't have though, as Zelaya missed a PK in the first half that would have given La Selecta the lead. He did score later, but Tejada just managed to get the ball over the El Salvador line in the 90th minute to equalize. There were no goals in extra time, and Panama went on to win 5-3 on PKs.

So it will be a rematch in the Gold Cup Semifinal in Houston: The USA vs. Panama. Who will get the last laugh?

Gold Cup: Canada vs. Panama

Ok, catching up on watching my Gold Cup matches before the next stage begins. I do feel bad for the Canadians. The Canadian team goes out of the Gold Cup, the Canucks blow the Stanley Cup, and TFC just stinks.

Tough tournament for team Canada. It's not that they played poorly, it's just that they didn't play well enough. Particularly, in order to advance in a tournament like this, you have to be able to score goals. Getting one PK per game then hoping your defense will hold isn't going to cut it.

Still, they were oh so close to going through.

In the 62nd minute, DeRo was taken down in the box. He converted the spot kick to give Canada a 1-0 lead. This made US Fans nervous. If Canada pulled out all three points, the US would have to win and take care of goal differential to go through.

Unfortunately for the Canucks, that's all they could muster. Panama attacked the rest of the game, and you could really tell that it wasn't a matter of if the equalizer would come, but when. It came in first minute of stoppage time. Perez tapped a goal in front of a crowded net to equalize 1-1. Panama clinched first place in Group C, and the with the USA's 1-0 over Guadeloupe, the Canadians were eliminated.

Good news for RSL fans, we get Will Johnson back early. Canada has some work to do heading into World Cup qualifying.

Gold Cup: USA vs. Panama

Where do you even start with this crapfest? When the USA got their clocks cleaned by Spain we were told that everything was ok, that it didn't matter. After all, Spain is the world champs. We played our B-team, and we were saving it for the Gold Cup.

Well, tonight we got our clocks cleaned by Panama. Panama: Not anywhere close to the World Champs. We had our A-Team on the field. Also, hey guess what, Gold Cup is here, let's go!

Sitting and looking at the 1-2 loss tonight, I think we have glaring problems in all three areas. As I've read other blogs and articles tonight, I don't think I'm alone.

The worst part is the defense. We're an absolute shambles in central defense. Whoever let Tim Ream anywhere near the national team should be fired, (hint hint). Ream was puzzled all night against the tough, physical Panama attackers, and his horrible tackle in the 18 directly led to the game winning goal via PK. If Bradley turns in a lineup sheet with him on it for the next game, he ought to be fired on the spot. I don't really care that he can pass. I thought we selected defenders based on their ability to DEFEND. He's proven that he's obviously not ready to defend at this level.

The second big issue is the attack. Where are the goals? Don't tell me this is fine because Jozy scored against Canada. It's not. He's inconsistent at best. Agudelo is too young. He's been invisible off the ball. As much as I love Wondolowski, he's missed a few point blank shots, including a potential equalizer tonight. He's not ready either. Charlie Davies anyone?

Finally, despite the fact that midfield is supposed to be our strength. We need an injection of creativity. Donovan didn't show up until the end, and we had to switch Dempsey up top just to create pressure. Goal.com suggests we should start Freddy Adu. I'm down with that, it can't get any worse for the USA.