The Mexican National Team took on Haiti at Statefarm Stadium for the first 2019 Gold Cup semifinal. It took them 120 minutes and a goal by Raul Jimenez to overcome Haiti.
First Half
The first of the 2019 Gold Cup semifinals had a fast start as Haiti’s Frantzdy Pierrot sliced trough the defense. Unfortunately for the Caribbean team, his shot went wide. Mexico took a shot of their own a few minutes later, with Rodolfo Pizarro going wide in the 10th minute.
El Tri then settled on the pitch and controlled the pace of play. The Mexican squad played wide as Pizarro, Jesus Gallardo, and Luis Rodriguez were very active playing near the touchlines. The Haitian XI got a bit more involved in the match around the 20th minute mark.
Haiti had speed as it was easy for them to run with the ball. However, they seemed to lack any sense of direction as they lacked creativity to generate scoring chances. Les Grenadiers, as they are known, had the willingness to attack, but failed most of the time.
The Mexican XI had patience on their side, but seemed shy when it came to finishing their plays.
The score hadn’t changed at halftime, 0-0.
Second Half
The second set of 45 minutes had a slow start. Both teams showed little willingness to generate offense during the opening minutes of the half.
Carlos Salcedo was the first man who dared to try. His shot went wide of the net at the 55th minute, Things went downhill for Mexico from that point on. The Aztec team had problems retaining the ball as they were imprecise and seemed to lack concentration.
The Mexican National Team was one man short momentarily. Luis Rodriguez was hit in the back of the head by Herve Bazile. Rodriguez started bleeding and had to leave the pitch for medical attention. He was back in action shortly.
Haiti had little trouble on defense as El Tri was not very dangerous at the front. This served the Haitians well as they grew in confidence and took control of ball possession. Despite gaining control of the ball, Guillermo Ochoa had little trouble containing Haiti’s offense.
Both teams were unable to score by the end of regulation and extra time was coming.
Raul Jimenez Scores
Extra time kicked off with a foul. It was no ordinary foul, however, as Raul Jimenez was taken down inside the box. Referee Abdulrahman Al Jassim awarded a penalty to El Tri.
Jimenez himself converted the PK at the 93rd minute to put his team ahead.
The Mexican XI regained confidence after the goal and once again looked solid at the back.
Haiti kept trying to level the score at the start of the second extra time half. Despite good intentions and decent passing, fatigue was evident as they could not keep up with the pace of play. Mexico’s good defense made it tougher for the Caribbeans to score.
Haiti had one more scoring chance before the end of the game and they saved the best for last. Mikael Cantave was close to tying the score as he hit the crossbar from outside the box at the 119th minute.
Mexico once again survived at the end of 120 minutes of play, sending CONCACAF’s Cinderella home.
Final Score:
Mexico 1-0 Haiti
Check out Guillermo Ochoa’s stellar performance against Costa Rica.