El Salvador takes Group B lead in Concacaf U-20 Championship | OneFootball

IRAPUATO, Mexico – The 2024 Concacaf Men's U-20 Championship continued with the opening encounters in Group B on Saturday at the Sergio Leon Chavez Stadium in Irapuato, Guanajuato, Mexico.

El Salvador started the tournament at the top of Group B, securing three points with a 1-nil win over the Dominican Republic. Honduras and Canada tied 2-2 to split the points and place second and third after the first round of matches.

El Salvador takes victory in Group B opener

El Salvador opened its campaign with a 1-nil victory over the Dominican Republic.

Aidan Russell had the first look on goal for either side in the 4’ but the Dominican Republic man was denied by El Salvador goalkeeper Daniel Franco.

Franco would be called upon to make another save in the 37’ to deny a penalty kick attempt from Yordy Alvarez.

Elian Concepcion had a look inside the box in the 38’ but Franco was alert to make another save and keep his clean sheet alive.

Nelson Diaz had a look on goal in the 45’ but Dominican goalkeeper Edwin Frias made the stop.

Ayden Kokoszka struck inside the box for the Dominican Republic in the 51’ but was denied by the left post.

Steven Guerra had a look towards goal off a free kick opportunity in the 55’ but the El Salvador captain’s attempt was just over the crossbar.

Christopher Argueta scored the lone goal of the encounter in the 62' with a strike inside the goal area near the left post. Guerra earned the assist by winning the ball on the right touchline to set up the pass across the box.

Cristian Ortiz had a header in the box in the 64’ but missed the opportunity to equalize.

Nicolas Cruz had one last look towards goal for the Dominican Republic in the 90'+8 before time expired.

Honduras comes back to draw with Canada

Honduras and Canada tied 2-2 in the second match of Group B, taking one point each to start their campaigns.

Roberto Osorto had a threatening shot in the 3’ but his curling effort was just wide of the Canada goal.

Gregoire Swiderski denied Nixon Cruz in the 12’ as Honduras continued to generate attempts.

Santiago Lopez opened the scoring in the 17' with a long-range strike off a free kick to put Canada up.

Myles Morgan extended the lead for Canada in the 43' with a strike in front of goal. Lopez earned the assist by helping the buildup inside the box despite the efforts of Honduran defender Anfronit Tatum.

Angel Villatoro scored for Honduras in the 55' with a strike inside the goal area. Villatoro pounced on a rebound after Swiderski saved a long range hit from Osorto.

Osorto tied the match in the 90'+4 with a strike inside the box, rescuing a point from the encounter.

Group B action resumes on Tuesday with Canada facing the Dominican Republic in the first half of the doubleheader. El Salvador and Honduras will add another chapter to their Central American rivalry in the second match.

Panama vs. Guatemala open Group C on Sunday

Panama and Guatemala will open the action in Group C on Saturday at the Sergio Leon Chavez Stadium in Irapuato, Guanajuato, Mexico.

The two nations will face each other for the fourth time in the group stage of the CMU20C. Guatemala leads the series with two wins to one for Panama.

After reaching the quarterfinals in the 2022 edition, Panama arrives in Mexico aiming to secure its seventh qualification for the FIFA U-20 Men's World Cup since its last appearance at Poland 2019.

The rise of Panamanian football is reflected in their successes at the CMU20, where they finished as runners-up in 2015, third place in 2018, and won their group in the 2003 and 2005 editions.

The top scorers for Panama in the CMU20 are Cecilio Waterman, Ameth Ramírez, and

Ismael Diaz, each with four goals.

One of Panama’s players to watch is Rafael Mosquera, who played in four matches in the 2022 edition and was part of the U-23 squad that participated in the 2023 Toulon Tournament.

Another player to follow will be Blas Perez, the son of the former Panamanian forward by the same name, who has 12 appearances in the Panamanian first division between Arabe Unido

and Tauro FC.

Guatemala was a sensation in the CMU20 2022 in Honduras, where it reached the

semifinals and qualified for the FIFA World Cup in Argentina 2023.

The all-time scorer for Guatemala in the CMU20 is Arquimides Ordoñez with five goals, who was selected for the tournament's Best XI in 2022 due to his brilliant performance.

With top scorer Matthew Evans scoring four goals, Guatemala won Group C of the

Concacaf qualifiers. He scored a hat-trick with four shots in the 6-nil victory against Saint Martin on matchday two of Group C.

Another name to keep in mind is Fausto Delgado, who did not concede any goals in his two appearances in the qualifiers. He made four saves and one clearance in the qualifiers for the CMU20.

Hosts Mexico starts against Haiti

Mexico and Haiti will face each other for the fifth time in the group stage of the CMU20C when they clash in the second match of Sunday’s doubleheader. The previous two encounters ended in a draw.

The tournament hosts will make their 28th participation. Mexico dominated the early

years of the tournament from 1962 to 2015, a period in which they won thirteen titles.

The all-time scorer for Mexico in the CMU20 is Jose Juan Macias with 10 goals.

One player vying for that record is Stephano Carrillo, who was the top scorer of the 2023 Concacaf U-17 Championship in Guatemala with eight goals in six matches). Additionally, he scored three goals in his four appearances in the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Indonesia.

Alexei Dominguez is another young prodigy to watch after helping CF Pachuca to win the 2024 Concacaf Champions Cup. He participated in four matches, scoring a goal in the quarterfinals against CS Herediano of Costa Rica.

Haiti has become a constant participant in the final phase of the Concacaf U-20 Championship since 2013 and will seek to take the next step that leads them to their first FIFA U-20 Men's World Cup.

This current squad achieved an impressive record in the Concacaf qualifiers as the team that scored the most headers with five in Group E.

Bryan Destin scored half of Haiti's goals in Group E of the qualifiers for the 2024 U-20

Championship. He scored two goals off headers, one from open play, and one from a penalty kick.

Joseph Belmar scored a header in the 1-1 draw against Puerto Rico in Haiti's last game in

Group E of the qualifiers for the 2024 U-20 Championship, and another name to keep in mind for Les Grenadiers.