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The US men’s national team and Mexico will renew their rivalry on Sunday night in the Concacaf Nations League final at AT&T Stadium.
The Stars and Stripes took the more complicated route to the final after their scare against Trinidad and Tobago in the quarterfinals in which they triumphed 4-2 on aggregate despite losing the second leg 2-1. Gregg Berhalter’s side trailed nearly the entire 90 minutes in the semifinal vs Jamaica, but a late own goal saw the two teams battle in extra time.
A pair of Haji Wright goals — both assisted by Gio Reyna — lifted the US to a 3-1 victory.
On the other side of the matchup, El Tri also had a tough time in their quarterfinal clash with Honduras. Mexico managed to advanced to the semifinals 4-2 on penalty kicks after the tie was all knotted up at two apiece. Jaime Lozano’s squad made light work of Panama in the semifinals with a 3-0 triumph to seal their place in the final against their bitter rivals.
The US have outmatched their southern rivals in recent years and are currently on a six-game unbeaten run against El Tri. The USMNT lifted the first two editions of the Nations League and they’ll be aiming to make it a three-peat ahead of this summer’s Copa America.
Here’s 90min’s preview of the Concacaf Nations League final.
USMNT | Mexico |
|---|---|
USMNT 3-1 Jamaica – 21/03/2024 | Panama 0-3 Mexico – 21/03/2024 |
USMNT 0-1 Slovenia – 20/01/2024 | Mexico 2-0 Honduras (4-2 pen.) – 21/11/2023 |
Trinidad and Tobago 2-1 USMNT – 20/11/2023 | Honduras 2-0 Mexico – 17/11/2023 |
USMNT 3-0 Trinidad and Tobago – 16/11/2023 | Mexico 2-2 Germany – 17/10/2023 |
USMNT 4-0 Ghana – 17/10/2023 | Mexico 2-0 Ghana – 14/10/2023 |
Country | TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
United Kingdom | Paramount + |
United States | Univision, TUDN, Paramount + |
Canada | OneSoccer |
Reyna was reportedly on a minutes restriction against Jamaica and it’s unknown whether he’ll be able to feature from the jump in the final.
However, if he’s fit enough to make the bench, you can expect Berhalter to bring him into the contest at some point regardless of the score.
USMNT predicted lineup vs Mexico (4-3-3): Turner; Scally, Richards, M. Robinson, A. Robinson; Musah, McKennie, Tillman; Weah, Balogun, Pulisic.
Lozano will be without his preferred right-back after Julian Araujo picked up a hamstring injury in Mexico’s victory over Panama.
As Araujo started the semifinal, you can expect Erick Aguirre to slot into the starting XI to face off against USA’s Christian Pulisic.
Mexico predicted lineup vs USMNT (4-3-3): Ochoa; Aguirre, Montes, Vasquez, Gallardo; Sanchez, Alvarez, Chavez; Lozano, Gimenez, Quinones.
With both teams near full strength, the latest installment of this heated rivalry promises to be an entertaining bout. The US will be eager to clinch their third Nations League title, while Mexico will hope to get revenge after falling 3-0 in their latest meeting in the semifinals last summer.
This one could either way given how both teams didn’t put in complete or convincing performances in the semifinals against lesser opposition. However, the Stars and Stripes will lift the Nations League trophy once more after a late goal deep in extra time right before the final whistle.
