Jamaica celebrates their semifinal win over USMNT in the 2015 Gold Cup. (Photo : Reuters)
Tournament favorite Mexico will battle the 2015 Gold Cup's heartbreak team, Jamaica, in the final of this summer's CONCACAF competitions at the Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on Sunday, July 26.
Mexico escaped with a 2-1 win over Panama in their semifinal encounter on Wednesday, as reported by Fox Sports. Two controversial penalty calls converted by midfielder Andrés Guardado in stoppage time gave Miguel Herrera's men the opportunity to go back from a 0-1 hole they were in early in the second half.
It was another uninspiring performance for El Tri, but they got away again with Guardado's magic for the second game in a row after regulation time.
However, the biggest surprise of the tourney was Jamaica. Winfried Schäfer wards have pulled off a huge upset in beating 2013 Gold Cup winners Team USA, 2-1, in the days' other semifinal, as reported by the New York Times.
The dynamic duo of Darren Mattocks and Giles Barnes put the Jamaicans on top early in the match, then the whole team survived the Americans unrelenting attacks for the rest of the game, except US captain Michael Bradley's put back in the 47th-minute, to get away with the win.
This final may not be what everyone expected, but it will sure bring the anticipated level of excitement for this bi-annual event.
Prediction: It would be a tough fight, but Jamaica wins their first Gold Cup in history, 3-2, over a hard-fighting Mexican eleven. Barring any controversial calls again, Schäfer and his Reggae Boyz ride in the momentum of defeating the defending champions to bring down La Verde's return to the top.
Mexico starting lineup (5-3-2 formation): Ochoa; Aguilar, Reyes, Rodríguez, Alanís, Layún; Herrera, dos Santos, Guardado; Peralta, Vela
Jamaica starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Thompson; Mariappa, Morgan, Hector, Lawrence; McCleary, Austin, Watson, McAnuff; Barnes, Mattocks
