Jamaica forward Darren Mattocks (Photo : Reuters)
Caribbean Cup champions Jamaica is scheduled to face Canada during the second round of group eliminations in the 2015 Gold Cup at the BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston on Saturday, July 11.
Both teams are reportedly vying for a spot in Group B to join tournament favorite Costa Rica in the quarterfinals.
Winfried Schäfer's boys will be riding on the momentum of their surprise 2-2 standoff with the highly-regarded Los Ticos in their opening game on Wednesday at the StubHub Center in Carson, as per Yahoo Sports. Jamaica's goals were provided by midfielders' Garath McCleary and Jobi McAnuff.
McCleary punched in the first goal during the early minutes of the match to move up quickly by one, but La Sele's Roy Miller and David Ramírez netted consecutive goals before halftime to push the team ahead, 2-1. McAnuff then scored the surprise goal three minutes into the second half to equalize the count.
Later that day, Canada settled for a scoreless draw with El Salvador in the same field, which alarmed some of their fans, as reported by MLS Soccer.
Benito Floro's Les Rouges did not play with the intensity expected of them against the inexperienced La Selecta side, which made them gain only a single point in the overall standings with the tie.
Prediction: The Reggae Boyz over the Canucks, 2-1. Jamaica is tougher than Canada overall. The draw with El Salvador is not a good sign that the Reds are ready to beat Schäfer's boys for second place in Group B.
Jamaica starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Miller; Mariappa, Austin, Morgan, Lawrence; McCleary, Taylor, McAnuff, Austin; Barnes, Mattocks
Canada starting lineup (4-3-2-1 formation): Stamatopoulos; Ledgerwood, Edgar, Jakovic, de Jong; Akindele, Straith, Bekker; Ricketts, Piette; Larin
