LOS ANGELES, California – When Mexico fans look back on the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup, the first name that will come to mind is Jaime Lozano.
Following El Tricolor’s Third-Place finish in the 2022-23 Concacaf Nations League Finals, Lozano was brought in as the interim Head Coach for Mexico and has infused a spark into the squad that has led to a place in the Final.
Just days into his tenure, Lozano’s Mexico team kicked off their 2023 Gold Cup campaign in Group B against Honduras at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas and it could not have started better.
Just 51 seconds into the match, Mexico had their first goal of the Gold Cup, with Luis Romo finding the back of the net. Romo would later add a second score and was joined by Orbelin Pineda and Luis Chavez to complete a commanding 4-0 victory against the Catrachos.
The good times for El Tricolor carried into their second Group B match at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona where goals from Henry Martin and Santiago Gimenez, plus an own goal, earned Mexico a 3-1 victory over Haiti.
While El Tricolor did suffer a slight stumble in their group stage finale at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California against Qatar, narrowly falling 1-0, there were many reasons for optimism after achieving a first-place finish in the group and having rediscovered their scoring touch under Lozano.
Mexico faced familiar Gold Cup foes Costa Rica in the quarterfinals at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas and delivered an excellent defensive performance, combined with opportunistic scoring in the second half, in a 2-0 win on goals from Pineda and Erick Sanchez.
The best was yet to come, though, as Mexico squared off with Jamaica in the semifinals at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Going up against a side with many players hailing from England’s Premier League, Mexico never blinked and struck for a goal just 80 seconds into the contest through Martin.
Jamaica never could recover from the early blow landed by El Tricolor and the exclamation point came on the half-hour mark via an exquisite free kick taken by Chavez that curled around the Jamaica wall and into the top left corner of net.
A late Roberto Alvarado goal capped Mexico’s finest performance in this Gold Cup, setting themselves up for a chance to claim a record ninth Gold Cup crown on Sunday.
After suffering disappointment last month in the CNL Finals, Mexico have found their stride under Lozano and are now 90 minutes away from fulfilling a dream.
