DENVER, Colorado – The semifinals of the Concacaf Nations League Finals are set for Thursday at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado and the second semifinal between Mexico and Costa Rica is sure to be a treat.
El Tricolor reached the CNLF by virtue of their first-place finish in Group B of League A, with a perfect 4W-0D-0L record against opponents Bermuda and Panama.
Mexico scored the second-most goals out of all the teams in League A, with 13 over the course of their four matches, while allowing just three in the process.
In the October 2019 FIFA window, Mexico opened with a 5-1 win at Bermuda, followed by a 3-1 home win over Panama in which Jose Juan Macias scored three goals in the two games.
A month later, a Raul Jimenez brace paved the way for a 3-0 win at Panama before Uriel Antuna’s second half stoppage time goal secured a 2-1 home win against Bermuda.
Among the key players to watch for Mexico will be FW Hirving Lozano. The Napoli striker had a pair of goals in Mexico’s 2-1 friendly win over Iceland last Saturday and also scored the lone goal in Mexico’s 1-0 friendly win against Costa Rica this past March.
Lozano also contributed a goal in the aforementioned 5-1 win at Bermuda and will be bolstered by the presence of fellow attacker Roberto Alvarado. Fresh off of winning the Liga MX title with Cruz Azul, Alvarado will be aiming to build on his CNL goal-scoring total (1) against the Ticos.
Costa Rica were involved in a tough battle in Group D of League A with Haiti and Curacao throughout all of the CNL.
In the end though, the Central Americans emerged on top with a 1W-3D-0L mark, with four goals scored and just three conceded.
Costa Rica kicked off their CNL campaign in the October 2019 window with a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Haiti in which Jose Guillermo Ortiz found the back of the net for the Ticos.
That was followed three days later by another tight contest, this time against Curacao, with a 0-0 draw serving as the final result.
The November 2019 window and a visit to Curacao meant crunch time for Costa Rica, and they came through with aplomb in posting a 2-1 win in the Caribbean thanks to goals from Johan Venegas and Francisco Calvo.
Costa Rica then assured their place in the CNLF with a 1-1 draw at home against Haiti, with Calvo once again coming through with a key score.
In addition to the dangerous Calvo, Costa Rica will also be looking to the likes of veteran attackers Joel Campbell and Bryan Ruiz to provide some fireworks in the final third. Ruiz is no stranger to scoring against Mexico in Concacaf tournaments, having notched a score in three Concacaf tournament games against El Tricolor.
