MIAMI.- Mexico and El Salvador started facing off in international matches all the way back in the 1920s and will resume the long-running series in 2021 when they meet in Gold Cup Group A.
There is a storied history between Mexico and El Salvador, who in addition to numerous classic matches in the Gold Cup and Concacaf World Cup Qualifying, even met in a World Cup Finals group stage match in 1970 at the Estadio Azteca.
More recently, the teams also shared a group at the 2017 Gold Cup, with Mexico topping El Salvador 3-1 behind goals from Hedgardo Marin, Elias Hernandez and Orbelin Pineda in front of a crowd of more than 53,000 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.
In 2011, an even larger crowd at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas saw Javier “Chicharito” Hernández’s hat trick lead Mexico to a 5-0 in its first match of a tournament it eventually would win. It also debuted in the tournament against El Salvador in 2002, when Jair García’s goal pushed El Tri past La Selecta, though both teams would advance from Group A.
The meeting next summer will mark the 40th meeting between two of the historic squads in Concacaf. Mexico holds an advantage with only five losses compared to 33 wins and just one stalemate between the two teams. El Salvador’s most recent win came at the Estadio Cuscatlan in 2009, when a Cuauhtemoc Blanco penalty wasn’t enough to overcome a goal from Julio Enrique Martinez and a penalty from Eliseo Quintanilla.
El Salvador manager Carlos de los Cobos, himself a former Mexico international, also will see another familiar set of faces at the 2021 Gold Cup with fellow Group A rival Curacao. El Salvador topped Curacao 1-0 in group play in last year’s Gold Cup, but Curacao was able to advance from the group despite the defeat.
