FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida – There were many times in the last nine months when Darwin Lom could have easily given up on his 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup dream with Guatemala.
The 25-year-old Xelaju FW had been afflicted with injuries both last October and again in the spring, putting his Gold Cup in jeopardy.
But his faith in the recovery process and resilience never wavered, and Tuesday night after entering the match in the 10th minute for the injured Rubio Rubin, he was handsomely rewarded by scoring the lone goal in Guatemala’s 1-0 win over Cuba in Group D to give Guatemala their first Gold Cup group stage win since the 2011 edition.
“It’s been a month since I’ve played a game. I came back from an injury not knowing if I was going to be able to make it, but like we say back home, God has a plan,” said Lom in an exclusive interview with Concacaf.com following the match.
“We're sad for Rubio for his injury, hopefully he can get better, but we always talk about how we always have to be prepared, especially for a striker. You have to come in and do the job that you have to do, which is score a goal,” added Lom, whose previous Gold Cup goal came in the 2021 Prelims versus Guyana.
Lom’s memorable night had many twists and turns following his early entry onto the pitch. Right before halftime, he had a penalty attempt saved, which kept things scoreless. Instead of getting down about his failure to convert, Lom instead turned it into a source of motivation.
“Coming into the second half and scoring really took the whole weight off for me. I felt freer and it obviously motivated the whole team, so it was good. I’m super happy, but the job is not done. Now we think about the next one,” said Lom.
Lom added that he also got a lift from his teammates during the break after his miss from the spot.
“Honestly, I knew it was going to happen,” said Lom with a chuckle. “Sooner or later missing a PK was going to happen, but I always told myself that if it happens, I need to wake up. I have to be ready for the next play. At halftime the whole team came up to me and it motivated me. At the end of the day, I have to be ready for the next ball and thankfully it went in,” said Lom.
Lom was basking in the moment and all smiles recounting his performance on the night, but he also took time to recall what it was like trying to recover from his recent injuries.
Without his dedication and drive to make it in time to be on Guatemala’s Gold Cup roster, along with the help from family and friends, Lom’s magical moment on Tuesday may have never happened.
“It was a lot of work. I had people behind me motivating me, waking up for five AM workouts before training when my team was at an altitude of 2000 meters. It was a grind. I wasn't going to do it for nothing. I needed to be here and I told myself I had to be here no matter what. I did everything possible to be here and like I said, God has a plan and His timing was perfect,” concluded Lom.
Darwin Lom, anotó su 2do gol en Copa Oro en 6 partidos disputados y se convirtió en el tercer jugador guatemalteco que anotó un gol del triunfo cuando el marcador fue 1-0.
