This is one thing El Tri and their fans do not want to see tonight - Team USA celebrating yet another win over Mexico. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)
World Cup qualifying: El Tri desperate to exorcise U.S. demons
Team USA will be without midfielder Weston McKennie when they take on El Tri at the Estadio Azteca tonight. (Photo by Brad Smith/ISI Photos/Getty Images)
Team USA invades the Estadio Azteca pitch tonight eager to prolong Mexico’s misery as the Concacaf World Cup qualifying campaign hits the final stretch. Gregg Berhalter’s team has defeated El Tri three straight times, most recently in a November qualifier in Cincinnati.
Although the Mexico-US match is considered the Concacaf derby, Canada stands comfortably atop the qualifying group with 25 points.
The so-called Concacaf giants are looking up at The Maple Leafs with 21 points each though the United States sits in second thanks to a better goal differential (+9, compared to Mexico’s +6).
The Canucks are in Costa Rica needing just a tie to claim their second-ever invitation to a World Cup, while El Tri and Uncle Sam’s men still have work to do with Panama battling to steal one of the three automatic bids.
El Tri desperate for a win
Mexico’s poor performances through 10 qualifiers has Coach Gerardo Martino under heavy fire (expect to hear “Fire ‘Tata’” chants if El Tri falls behind tonight) and his team selections received heavy scrutiny.
El Tri has had trouble finding the net throughout the campaign as the much-heralded attack trident of Raúl Jiménez, “Chucky” Lozano and “Tecatito” Corona has failed to click. They must deliver against a young U.S. defense to fulfill Mexico’s World Cup dreams.
There are reports the Mexican Soccer Federation is already negotiating with Tigres manager Miguel Herrera to take over El Tri should the team fail to win at the Azteca. Herrera rescued Mexico late during the 2014 World Cup qualifying process and guided El Tri to Brazil.
Neither the U.S. nor Mexico can afford to lose tonight and a tie does neither team much good, either, as the regional “giants” strive to avoid falling into fourth place which would require an inter-confederation playoff victory to reach Qatar.
Panama sits just 4 points back in fourth place and hosts last-place Honduras with a chance to narrow the gap. The Central Americans then get Team USA in Orlando, Florida, on March 27 in a match that could be truly consequential. If the U.S. loses or draws against Mexico and Panama defeats Honduras, Sunday’s match would be for third place and the final automatic berth.
Slightly complicating matters, Costa Rica is only 1 point behind Panama but as they face undefeated Canada tonight, they are expected to be chasing the playoff spot that goes to the fourth-place finisher.
Elsewhere Thursday, Jamaica (7 points) hosts El Salvador (9 points). The Reggae Boyz have already been eliminated while the Salvadorans hang by a thread as they’d need to win all three remaining games while Panama lost all three AND Costa Rica lost two of three. Then, and only then, would El Salvador advance to the inter-confederation playoff.
