Mexico will hope to book their spot in the knockout stage of the Gold Cup by seeing off Jamaica in their second group match Thursday.
The tournament favorites got off to a solid start by defeating El Salvador last week, with Elias Hernandez influential in their 3-1 victory.
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Jamaica rode their luck to defeat Curacao earlier on the same night, and while they had goalkeeper Andre Blake to thank for their 2-0 win they now have one foot in the quarterfinals.
| Game | Mexico vs Jamaica |
| Date | Thursday, July 13 |
| Time | 8:30 p.m. local time, 10:30 p.m. ET |
TV CHANNEL & LIVE STREAM
In the U.S., the match will be available to watch live on television on FS1 and by stream via Fox Sports Go. It can also be watched in Spanish on Univision.
| US TV channel | Online stream |
|---|---|
| FS1 / Univision | Fox Sports Go |
In the UK, the match will not be broadcast live on television.
SQUADS & TEAM NEWS
| Position | Mexico players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Corona, Fraga, Munoz |
| Defenders | Rodriguez, Pereira, Ayala, Alvarez, Montes, Marin, Lopez, Reyes, Mayorga |
| Midfielders | Molina, Pineda, Gutierrez, E. Hernandez, Pizarro, J. Hernandez, Gallardo, Duenas |
| Forwards | Torres, Barragan, Sepulveda |
Mexico has a tendency to rotate heavily and throw different formations at its opponents, making its starting lineup game-to-game a difficult thing to predict.
We may expect to see Orbelin Pineda again after he came off the bench to score against El Salvador, while Jesus Gallardo dropped in at left back to good effect.
Potential starting XI: Corona; Alvarez, Ayala, Marin, Gallardo; Duenas, Molina, Pizarro; E. Hernandez, Torres, Pineda.
| Position | Jamaica players |
|---|---|
| Goalkeepers | Blake, Miller, Hyatt |
| Defenders | Harriott, Lowe, Ritchie, Powell, Campbell, Fisher, Lawrence, Taylor |
| Midfielders | Grandison, Binns, Watson, Lambert, Gordon, Morris |
| Forwards | Orgill, Mattocks, Burke, Nicholson, Johnson, Williams |
Jamaica, somewhat surprisingly, left Darren Mattocks out of the starting XI for its tournament opener, but the veteran's goal should be enough to earn him a recall.
Potential starting XI: Blake; Powell, Lowe, Taylor, Lawrence; Lambert, Watson; Fisher, Mattocks, Gordon; Williams.
BETTING & GAME ODDS
Mexico is a 4/11 favorite to make it six points out of six, according to Oddschecker, with Jamaica an outsider at 10/1 and the draw available at 4/1.
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Erick Torres and Martin Barragan are the 7/2 favorites to score first, with Darren Mattocks the top choice for Jamaica at 12/1.
GAME PREVIEW
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The Gold Cup is off to a good start for Mexico.
El Tri were not perfect in their tournament opener against El Salvador, but they eventually came away with a comfortable win and the three points they now have on the board will serve to take the pressure off and allow them to experiment against Jamaica and Curacao.
How will El Tri line-up vs Jamaica
There was plenty for stand-in coach Luis Pompilio Paez to work with and build around — Elias Hernandez showed he is capable of being the team's primary source of creativity in attack and youngster Edson Alvarez turned in a promising display at the back.
By contrast, El Tri's biggest rival in the United States stuttered to a 1-1 draw against Panama, and though Costa Rica beat Honduras, the Ticos were not particularly convincing in doing so.
There is a long way to go yet, but the early signs for the Mexicans are positive. If Erick Torres is able to come into the team and make an impact at center forward — probably the biggest question mark in the lineup — it would be hard to bet against them reaching the final.
Though the group does not look particularly challenging, Jamaica will likely be the toughest of the three opponents — if nothing else than for the acrobatics of its goalkeeper, Andre Blake, who kept Curacao at bay in a 2-0 win to get started.