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hvor de skal møde Panama, som blev det første hold til at slå Mexico back to back i samme Gold Cup.

Panama oust Mexico in semifinal

http://www.youtube.com/w…h7nnoGf2u8s

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Roman Torres´ glancing header off a corner kick helped Panama beat Mexico 2-1 on Wednesday night and earn a spot in the CONCACAF Gold Cup final.

Torres´ goal in the 61st minute came off a corner from teammate Gabriel Torres. With a one-goal cushion, Panama was able to survive a Mexican attack that produced four good scoring opportunities over the next 30 minutes.

Panama will play the United States on Sunday in Chicago for the Gold Cup championship. The teams played in the 2005 Gold Cup final, won by the U.S. on penalty kicks.

Blas Perez struck first, giving Panama a 1-0 lead in the 13th minute when he blasted a shot to the near post, beating goalkeeper Jonathan Orozco.

In the 26th minute, Mexico´s Marco Fabian faked a defender deep in the box and then lofted a cross to the far side of the goal. Luis Montes´ diving header sent the ball into the far upper corner for the tying goal.

After Torres´ goal, Mexico squandered multiple scoring opportunities. In the 70th minute, Panama goalkeeper Jaime Pendo made a diving save on a shot by Jorge Enriquez. Three minutes later, Montes missed just wide.

Pendo also made a fingertip save on Isaac Brizuela´s shot, pushing the ball on top of the net. In the 89th minute, Javier Orozco´s diving header missed wide by inches.

Mexico was seeking a fourth straight final against the U.S. Mexico had won the last two by a combined score of 9-2.

It was just the second time in 15 matches that Panama defeated Mexico.

"It´s frustrating. We fell short of one of our objectives," Mexico coach Jose Manuel de la Torre said. "We wanted to be in the final."

hvor ungt er El Salvadors hold? Jeg kunne huske at de havde en eller anden ungdomsspillere som lavede årets mål langt langt udefra mod et af Honduras´ ungdomshold (U17 eller U19 tror jeg).

De har vel masser af tid til at bygge et hold op nu. Jeg håber snart at de får nogle hjemmekampe mod Honduras eller Mexico. Der er en vildt intimiderende stemning på Estadio Cuscatlán i de kampe.

Trist nyhed fra Brasilien. Djalma Santos - VM-vinder 1958 og 1962 - er død i en alder af 84 år. Det var en lungebetændelse, som fældede Palmeiras-backen. Djalma Santos var en af de spillere, som var med til at udvikle positionen som back til at indeholde en masse offensive opgaver frem for bare at stå nede og forsvare.

Bedste venstre back...enough said.

Edit: højre back naturligvis

hvor ungt er El Salvadors hold? Jeg kunne huske at de havde en eller anden ungdomsspillere som lavede årets mål langt langt udefra mod et af Honduras´ ungdomshold (U17 eller U19 tror jeg).

De har vel masser af tid til at bygge et hold op nu. Jeg håber snart at de får nogle hjemmekampe mod Honduras eller Mexico. Der er en vildt intimiderende stemning på Estadio Cuscatlán i de kampe.

Jeg tror gennemsnitsalderen er en 23/24 år...så der er noget at bygge på, de har også lidt at skyde med fra U-20 holdet som deltog ved U-20 VM fornyeligt. Dertil kommer jo nok et par spillere fra MLS der vælger at stille op fra El Salvador i fremtiden....så det ser spændende ud.

jeg kan godt lide at de i sidste hjemmekamp mod Mexico, måtte påminde tilskuerne om at det var forbudt at kaste med sabler :-)

Mexico supremacy no longer assured

Mexico´s 2-1 loss to Panama in the Gold Cup semifinal heralds a new open season in the CONCACAF tournament, just as it likely brings down the curtain on the era of Jose Manuel "Chepo" de la Torre as coach of El Tri.

It had become almost a ritual for Mexico and the USA to meet in the CONCACAF Gold Cup final: three times in a row, with El Tri winning the past two championships. With a total of six trophies in hand, Mexico´s place as the proverbial "Giant of CONCACAF" seemed secure after a period during which the USA had threatened to steal that claim. When Mexico added FIFA youth World Cup titles and Olympic gold to its trophy case, regional supremacy appeared to be assured for some time to come.

Then came the turn of the year and some true tests began for de la Torre. The warning signs came fast and furious as his top players -- aside from Carlos Vela, who refused to play for the Mexico squad he was once so proud to represent -- failed to fire offensively in draw after draw. World Cup qualifying results have been minimal. The Confederations Cup was a bust. And now the Gold Cup team has failed to reach the final. Though different players rotated across many of Mexico´s games this year, all the El Tri squads had one sad aspect in common: They didn´t play well.

Another factor in common, of course, was the coaching by de la Torre.

A coach may train players, encourage them, determine the lineup, formation and game strategy, but ultimately, a team´s fate is decided by those playing in the game. Yet that´s part of the reason why so many have been puzzled at Mexico´s halting progress in the CONCACAF Gold Cup. The quality of many of the Liga MX players seemed to dwarf what was available to the much smaller Central American and Caribbean countries. That presumably gave de la Torre, even if his coaching tactics were lacking, an advantage that many felt would make Mexico´s road to the final relatively easy.

No one gave Panama that memo, however. The Canaleros gave proof to their lack of respect for Mexico´s Gold Cup legacy earlier in the campaign, defeating El Tri 2-1 in their first game of the tournament. Then they did it again, as though to again prove their own ability and Mexico´s diminished stature in the region. Cheap time-wasting tactics aside, Panama was sharper in the attack, more solid in defense and created more chances than Mexico did throughout both games.

Panama scored first in the semifinal off a blast by Blas Perez that left Jonathan Orozco helpless. Mexico struck back with a goal orchestrated by Marco Fabian and finished by Luis Montes. But Roman Torres had the last word, his second-half header winning the game for Panama.

After the semifinal ended, Panama players didn´t quite start dancing and singing, "Who´s afraid of the big, bad wolf?" Yet the message sent out to other CONCACAF nations is clear enoug: Mexico is nothing to fear anymore.

It´s simply dangerous for any squad to appear vulnerable when World Cup qualifying is at stake. But with de la Torre at the helm, Mexico often seemed to be confused, badly positioned, playing with fear and, most of all, playing with a lack of understanding of how to best work together.

That was really the difference in this match. Panama played as a team that was more than the sum of its parts. Mexico played like a collection of parts that weren’t connected, while their coach acted like someone who had lost the instructions to put them together.

Now that Mexico is out of the Gold Cup, the question of whether de la Torre will exit now remains. The hubris of the Mexican federation is evident by how it has been ignoring all the early danger signs and continued to trust in de la Torre and his coaching process, even when all the results went south. Clearly, few in the administration wanted to oust the politically connected coach. Now, with fans ritualistically chanting, "Fuera Chepo," the pressure is building for the federation to act.

Yet there are those who probably hope de la Torre stays on, namely Honduran fans, who hope to see their team topple Mexico in the upcoming World Cup qualifier. Just as Mexico did, Honduras fell short of the Gold Cup final as well, losing 3-1 to the USA. Witnessing Panama´s success against El Tri, however, likely gives other squads hope for the future, reminding all that with a united effort, giants can always be brought down to earth.

jeg kan godt lide at de i sidste hjemmekamp mod Mexico, måtte påminde tilskuerne om at det var forbudt at kaste med sabler :-)

Hvis der 2 nationer mexicanerne har et anstrengt forhold til er det gringoerne og salvadoranerne, sidste nævnte har meget at gøre med problemer blandt indvandre i USA, du ved bandekonflikter La Mara Salvatrucha, M-18 osv, førstnævnte blev jo åbenbart startet for at beskytte salvadoranske immigranter mod overgreb fra mexicanere i USA...og så pga af mexicanerne selvopfattelse som nu ham her...Tv kommentator Faitelson som hævder at El Salvador ikke eksisterer forud for en VM kval kamp som Mexico så efterfølgende tabte...

http://www.youtube.com/w…2oN1NSSo8-c

Cuca er ikke verdens største træner

Cuca er garanti for underholdende fodbold, men redskabsskuffen er ikke så stor. Han var heldig med sine indskiftninger under det meste af turneringen, men så trækker det fra, at Atlético i de to udekampe mod Newell´s og Olimpia var for passive.

Et andet minus er, at Cuca kom for hurtigt op i det røde felt i finalen. Det var Ronaldinho, der overtog ansvaret, da trænerens blodtryk var for højt.

Nå ja, så er det heller ikke for kønt, at når chefen under nu to straffesparkskonkurrencer har mere travlt med at bede "Fader Vor" fra knæstilling end at følge sit hold i de afgørende spark fra pletten :)

Cuca er garanti for underholdende fodbold, men redskabsskuffen er ikke så stor. Han var heldig med sine indskiftninger under det meste af turneringen, men så trækker det fra, at Atlético i de to udekampe mod Newell´s og Olimpia var for passive.

Et andet minus er, at Cuca kom for hurtigt op i det røde felt i finalen. Det var Ronaldinho, der overtog ansvaret, da trænerens blodtryk var for højt.

Nå ja, så er det heller ikke for kønt, at når chefen under nu to straffesparkskonkurrencer har mere travlt med at bede "Fader Vor" fra knæstilling end at følge sit hold i de afgørende spark fra pletten :)

Hehehe ja, frygter lidt et møde med Bayern München, med ham som træner, det kan hurtigt blive en Bara- Santos version. Men det er godt nyt for brasiliansk klubfodbold...argentinerne må være ved at brænde sammen af raseri i Buenos Aires og omegn...hehehehe

@ FAS
Djalma Santos var bedste højre back, mens Nilton Santos lå til venstre. Er du sweeeeedt en back-konstellation :)