Poch taught lesson as Mexico cruise over USA; Canada win late | OneFootball

The big boys in CONCACAF were in action this evening up and down North America as the friendly action continued on the road to the 2026 World Cup.

Here is what went down

Mexico 2-0 United States

Scorers: Jiménez 22′, Huerta 49′

Mauricio Pochettino was dealt his first defeat as United States boss after being thoroughly outplayed by bitter rivals Mexico in Guadalajara Tuesday evening.

It had been five years since Mexico defeated the United States, but they did so with relative ease. The scoring was kicked off by Raúl Jiménez, who reminded us all just how good he can be on his day by leathering a wicked free-kick into the top-corner.

It was a first-half in which the United States could hardly lay a glove on their rivals, finishing the opening interval without a shot of any note.

It quickly got worse for the visitors after the break as Tim Ream was caught in possession playing out of the back, allowing Cesar Huerta to fire home Mexico’s second on the night.

While a flurry of substitutions painted a brighter picture for the U.S. in the dying minutes of the affair, it was not nearly enough to pull themselves back into the clash.

The United States’ seven-game winning streak over their rivals to the south came to a screeching halt, giving Mauricio Pochettino his first real taste of life in CONCACAF.

Canada 2-1 Panama

Scorers: Larin 44′ , David 87′ ; Fajardo 69′

A late Jonathan David goal saw Canada beat Panama in a friendly on a night when Jesse Marsch managed his first Canada game on home soil.

The home side had the bulk of the possession in the early going but struggled to find the final pass and carve out a scoring chance in front of the Panama goal.

The likes of Jacob Shaffelburg, Jonathan David, and Cyle Larin did their best to find space and fire shots at the Panamanian keeper, but it took until the latter was left all alone to break the deadlock.

A superb cross from the right-flank picked out Larin unmarked mere feet out from the goal, and the Mallorca man fired home to open the scoring.

While Canada appeared to be in total control, they were pegged back past the hour mark when José Fajardo, the man who scored to knock the United States out of the Copa América, pulled off a delicate chipped finish to level the scoreline.

It looked like the game might fizzle out into a frustrating draw for Canada, but the roof was lifted off of BMO Field when Jonathan David bagged a goal in the dying minutes to mark Jesse Marcsh’s home debut with a win.