Panama, Mexico seal quarterfinal spots in Concacaf U-20 Championship | OneFootball

IRAPUATO, Mexico – The 2024 Concacaf Men's U-20 Championship continued with the second round of encounters in Group C on Wednesday at the Sergio Leon Chavez Stadium in Irapuato, Guanajuato, Mexico.

Panama won its second consecutive match to increase its tally to six points and secure a spot in the knockout round. Mexico also qualified for the quarterfinals with a 2-1 victory over Guatemala.

Panama continues winning start

Panama won 3-1 over Haiti to stay in first place in Group C.

Gustavo Herrera opened the scoring in the 16' with a chipped shot from outside the box to capitalize on a goal kick from Cecilio Burgess.

Kairo Walters extended the lead in the 32' with a left-footed diagonal hit to the right-side netting.

Rafael Mosquera added a third for Panama from the penalty spot in the 45'+7 to make it a three-goal lead before halftime.

Bryan Destin cut the deficit in the 86' with an individual effort, dribbling the ball into the box before picking his shot on goal.

Los Canaleros remain perfect to start the group stage and will meet hosts Mexico in its last encounter. Haiti will face Guatemala in search of a victory to conclude the first phase.

Mexico outlasts Guatemala for second victory

Hosts Mexico held off a potential Guatemala comeback to collect a 2-1 victory and keep pace for the top of the group.

Francisco Mendez struck a header towards goal in the 29’ to capitalize off a corner kick for Mexico. The ball deflected off Guatemalan defender Diego Bolaños, officially marked as an own goal on the scoresheet, to give the hosts the lead.

Alexei Dominguez converted from the penalty spot in the 45'+4 to give Mexico a more decisive lead before halftime.

Selvin Sagastume struck his own attempt from the penalty marker in the 56' to cut the deficit and put Guatemala back within one.

Sagastume had a chance inside the box in the 85’ but was denied the equalizer by Mexican goalkeeper Emmanuel Ochoa, who finished the night with two saves.

Group C concludes on Saturday with Guatemala and Haiti in the first encounter. Hosts Mexico will face Panama with the top spot in the group on the line.

United States, Costa Rica play for first place

The final matchday in Group A will take place on Friday from the Estadio Leon in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico.

Cuba and Jamaica will face each other for the third time in the first phase of the CMU20C. It has been nearly 38 years since their last meeting in 1986. Cuba has never lost a match against Jamaica.

The current Cuba squad started the tournament with a 1-1 draw against Costa Rica before falling 4-nil to the United States. Samuel Rodriguez has the lone Cuba goal in the tournament.

Jamaica will look to conclude the group stage with its first victory. The Reggae Boyz have yet to score a goal but remain hopeful of reaching the next round with a victory and other results falling their way.

In the other group encounter, the United States and Costa Rica will face each other for the fifth time in the group stage of the CMU20C. This latest meeting will feature first place in the group on the line for the winner.

The U.S. has three consecutive wins against Costa Rica, with the most recent encounter ending in a 2-nil victory at the 2022 edition. Paxten Aaronson, currently representing the USA in the Olympics, scored a brace on that day.

Champions of the last three editions, the United States started their title defense with victories against Jamaica and Cuba. Taha Habroune was directly involved in three of the four goals in the 4-nil victory against Cuba.

Ten players have scored for the U.S., with Marcos Zambrano the only player to score in both matches. David Vazquez and Pedro Soma also have two goals to their tally due to braces in the first match.

Costa Rica has four points after a draw with Cuba and a 3-nil win over Jamaica. Andy Rojas has stood out for Costa Rica, scoring two goals to lead Los Ticos.

All to play for in Group B

Honduras and Canada occupy the top spots in Group B with four points each, with the former leading on goal difference. El Salvador is third on three points, but there is plenty to be decided heading into the final round of matches.

Canada and El Salvador will meet in the first group encounter of the night and face each other for the fourth time in the first phase of the CMU20C. Both will be vying for a victory to secure their place in the knockout phase.

The Canadians defeated the Dominican Republic on a goal from Tavio Ciccarelli to secure three valuable points. Before that, Canada tied 2-2 with Honduras on goals from Santiago Lopez and Myles Morgan.

El Salvador began its campaign with a 1-nil win over the Dominican Republic, thanks to a lone goal from Christopher Argueta. Nelson Diaz scored the opening goal against Honduras, but the team fell 4-1 against its Central American rivals.

In the other Group B match, Honduras will look to protect its first-place spot and pave its own way to the knockout stage, while the Dominican Republic will hope to make a last run at the quarterfinals with a victory.

Honduras came back in its opening encounter to rescue a point against Canada before building on that result with a 4-1 win over El Salvador. Roberto Osorto has been a critical man for Los Catrachos with one goal and two assists.

The Dominican Republic has lost by the narrowest of margins in back-to-back encounters. Edwin Frias has kept goals conceded to a low count with six saves in the two encounters.