Mexico eliminates Canada in CONCACAF Nations League semifinal

Greg Beacham · The Associated Press

· Posted: Mar 21, 2025 9:38 AM EDT | Last Updated: 2 minutes ago

Raul Jimenez scored successful the opening infinitesimal and again successful the 75th, lifting Mexico into the CONCACAF Nations League last with a 2-0 triumph implicit Canada connected Thursday nighttime successful Inglewood, Calif.

Jimenez, a 33-year-old Fulham striker, scored his 36th and 37th planetary goals to thrill a stadium packed with fans of El Tri, welcomed arsenic the location squad whenever it plays successful Southern California.

Mexico volition look Panama connected Sunday nighttime astatine SoFi Stadium for the accidental to go the archetypal victor of this tourney different than the big U.S.

Panama opened the semifinals with a melodramatic 1-0 triumph implicit the Americans, who won the archetypal 3 editions of this tournament.

After beating Honduras past November successful the Nations League quarterfinals, Mexico has won back-to-back matches for the archetypal clip since its tally to the 2023 Gold Cup title. El Tri won that trophy astatine SoFi Stadium, with Santi Gimenez's precocious extremity beating Panama 1-0 successful the final.

Mexico is backmost successful signifier wide aft a beardown show against Canada, which managed conscionable 1 changeable connected target.

"We were a squad today," Gimenez said. "We were a family, and we're precise blessed to beryllium successful the final. I deliberation this Cup, we're coming to triumph it."

Coach Javier Aguirre utilized some of his astir unsafe violative players simultaneously, playing Jimenez astatine centre guardant and Gimenez connected the close broadside of the beforehand enactment portion deploying Alexis Vega connected the left. The strategy worked against Canada.

"For me, it's an grant to play with Raul," said Gimenez, who plays for AC Milan. "I deliberation he's a large striker. I request to larn a batch [from] him. We person a peculiar transportation due to the fact that we're strikers that are doing good successful the club. Of course, we haven't played successful the nine with 2 strikers, but it was nice. I'm truly happy."

Canada volition look the struggling Americans successful the third-place lucifer Sunday successful the latest planetary sporting contention betwixt neighbours enactment astatine likelihood by President Donald Trump's incendiary rhetoric and tariff war. The 4 Nations hockey tourney earlier this wintertime featured Canadian fans booing the U.S. nationalist anthem.

WATCH | Mexico's opening-minute extremity sinks Canada successful CONCACAF Nations League semis:

"I thought that our guys truly pushed the game," Canada manager Jesse Marsch said. "I thought we were organized. We were the aggressor. We were connected apical of galore moments. I thought each feline gave a bully performance, and it's conscionable 1 of those games wherever the bounces conscionable don't truly spell your way."

Marsch was besides angered by the referee's determination not to grant a punishment successful the ninth infinitesimal erstwhile Derek Cornelius was clipped by Edson Alvarez successful the box.

"They judge powerfully successful the squad that they're becoming, truthful it was similar a weapon successful the bosom to play well, to truly bash a batch of bully things successful the game, but past conscionable autumn abbreviated of the goal," Marsch said. "That disappointment is hard to shingle ... but successful truthful galore ways it's conscionable different measurement wherever we're continuing to amusement our quality, our organization, our intelligence, and present it's conscionable a small spot of savvy, a small spot of quality that the champion planetary teams have."

After a large rendition of Mexico's nationalist anthem, El Tri instantly attacked and past capitalized disconnected a fortunate bounce.

Jimenez got the shot to Roberto Alvarado, whose effort deflected disconnected a defender and landed successful beforehand of Jimenez. He slammed it home, mounting disconnected a chaotic solemnisation conscionable 57 seconds aft kickoff.

Canada, which entered with a six-game unbeaten streak, had a fistful of unfulfilled chances successful the 2nd fractional earlier Jimenez fundamentally wrapped it up with his superb spot kick.

After Gimenez won the escaped footwear extracurricular the punishment area, Jimenez curled a screamer implicit the wall, past goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair and into the close country of Canada's net, mounting disconnected beer-throwing celebrations passim the stands astatine the palatial location of the NFL's Los Angeles Rams.