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Counterattack: Country Other Than USA Or Mexico Win Gold Cup?
Chief editor Andrea Canales and Kyle McCarthy square off over the question of the future Gold Cup champion.
Jul 3, 2009 4:25:51 AM
The USA and Mexico have won the vast majority of Gold Cups - the regional championship trophy. Yet World Cup qualifying has proven that the CONCACAF region is now competitive. Regular columnist Kyle McCarthy and Chief Editor Andrea Canales square off over how open-ended the tournament really is.
Will this be the year someone other than U.S. or Mexico wins the Gold Cup?
Kyle McCarthy: The United States is always the smart pick playing on its home soil. But this isn't Bob Bradley's strongest group. There are a lot of untested players in the squad. Ditto for Mexico. So why shouldn't it be the year that Costa Rica or Canada finds a way to pierce their dominance?
Andrea Canales: At this point, the U.S. not winning would itself be a change - but I wouldn't count the Americans out. The U.S. players are talented, and with the likes of Altidore, Ching and Cherundolo, there's still a lot of top-shelf quality involved. Plus, the motivation for the young guns like Stuart Holden and Freddy Adu is high. If they want to play in the 2010 World Cup, this is their chance to catch Bradley's eye.
McCarthy: I agree that the U.S. might be a good call, even with the young guns, but that doesn't mean it's the only option. At a neutral venue, the Costa Ricans would probably be the pick because they lead the Hexagonal and brought just about everyone to the Gold Cup. To them, this isn't just some junior varsity distraction from World Cup qualifying. If they can skate through a group with El Salvador, Canada and Jamaica, they have more than enough to lift the trophy.
Canales: Costa Rica is a tough team on paper, and they've done well in the Hex this year, but it seems like in the Gold Cup, they fall short every time. I think the tournament is a bit of a jinx for them. I'm also not about to overlook Mexico. El Tri is a team out for redemption, and the Gold Cup is the perfect place for them to reassert themselves as contenders.
McCarthy: This squad just isn't the assortment of Mexican talent to do it. Sure, the first-teamers have struggled in the Hexagonal, but this group is mighty short on proven top-end quality. Old warhorses like Oscar Perez and Gerardo Torrado will have to keep the young bucks motivated to do well in the tourney.
Don't look past Canada, either. They're the only team to break the Mexico-United States oligarchy at the top and interim manager Stephen Hart is far more canny than most of the people who have inhabited that seat permanently in recent years. If they can score enough goals, they might have enough to make a splash with high-caliber midfielders Julian De Guzman and Atiba Hutchinson bossing the middle of the park.
Canales: Oh, I think Canada can make a splash - perhaps in taking out Costa Rica in the group stage. It's hard to forget Canada's infamous Gold Cup title was gained partly on a coin toss, though. Also, I don't see them at full-strength without DeRosario.
I'm usually not one to lean too much on history, but in the Gold Cup, it's too obvious to ignore. The U.S. and Mexico have traded the title back and forth, and all the other contenders have fallen a bit short, time and again. They'll pull off upsets, they'll come close, but in the end, one of the two big teams finds a way to pinch the trophy at the end.
McCarthy: It's hard to argue with the history in this competition. It's there for all to see. But all it takes is one team getting hot at the right time to break that stranglehold.
Canada's already done it once.
Costa Rica certainly has the guns to do it as well. And we haven't even talked about Honduras. They may not have a few of their top European players, but there's still some quality left in that squad as well.
If it's going to get done, there isn't a better time to do it with both Mexico and the United States appearing to brush off a competition most countries around the region take quite seriously.
Canales: While another country winning would add new spice to the competition, the Gold Cup does matter to the two big guns of the region, regardless of who they bring. It's true that often, either the U.S. or Mexico has an off year. I don't think the squads will meet in the final, for example. But one of the two will put it all together and make this tournament their own.
Counterattack runs every week on Goal.com
Talk all things soccer with the rest of our readers in the Goal.com Forums
Will this be the year someone other than U.S. or Mexico wins the Gold Cup?
Kyle McCarthy: The United States is always the smart pick playing on its home soil. But this isn't Bob Bradley's strongest group. There are a lot of untested players in the squad. Ditto for Mexico. So why shouldn't it be the year that Costa Rica or Canada finds a way to pierce their dominance?
Andrea Canales: At this point, the U.S. not winning would itself be a change - but I wouldn't count the Americans out. The U.S. players are talented, and with the likes of Altidore, Ching and Cherundolo, there's still a lot of top-shelf quality involved. Plus, the motivation for the young guns like Stuart Holden and Freddy Adu is high. If they want to play in the 2010 World Cup, this is their chance to catch Bradley's eye.
McCarthy: I agree that the U.S. might be a good call, even with the young guns, but that doesn't mean it's the only option. At a neutral venue, the Costa Ricans would probably be the pick because they lead the Hexagonal and brought just about everyone to the Gold Cup. To them, this isn't just some junior varsity distraction from World Cup qualifying. If they can skate through a group with El Salvador, Canada and Jamaica, they have more than enough to lift the trophy.
Canales: Costa Rica is a tough team on paper, and they've done well in the Hex this year, but it seems like in the Gold Cup, they fall short every time. I think the tournament is a bit of a jinx for them. I'm also not about to overlook Mexico. El Tri is a team out for redemption, and the Gold Cup is the perfect place for them to reassert themselves as contenders.
McCarthy: This squad just isn't the assortment of Mexican talent to do it. Sure, the first-teamers have struggled in the Hexagonal, but this group is mighty short on proven top-end quality. Old warhorses like Oscar Perez and Gerardo Torrado will have to keep the young bucks motivated to do well in the tourney.
Don't look past Canada, either. They're the only team to break the Mexico-United States oligarchy at the top and interim manager Stephen Hart is far more canny than most of the people who have inhabited that seat permanently in recent years. If they can score enough goals, they might have enough to make a splash with high-caliber midfielders Julian De Guzman and Atiba Hutchinson bossing the middle of the park.
Canales: Oh, I think Canada can make a splash - perhaps in taking out Costa Rica in the group stage. It's hard to forget Canada's infamous Gold Cup title was gained partly on a coin toss, though. Also, I don't see them at full-strength without DeRosario.
I'm usually not one to lean too much on history, but in the Gold Cup, it's too obvious to ignore. The U.S. and Mexico have traded the title back and forth, and all the other contenders have fallen a bit short, time and again. They'll pull off upsets, they'll come close, but in the end, one of the two big teams finds a way to pinch the trophy at the end.
McCarthy: It's hard to argue with the history in this competition. It's there for all to see. But all it takes is one team getting hot at the right time to break that stranglehold.
Canada's already done it once.
Costa Rica certainly has the guns to do it as well. And we haven't even talked about Honduras. They may not have a few of their top European players, but there's still some quality left in that squad as well.
If it's going to get done, there isn't a better time to do it with both Mexico and the United States appearing to brush off a competition most countries around the region take quite seriously.
Canales: While another country winning would add new spice to the competition, the Gold Cup does matter to the two big guns of the region, regardless of who they bring. It's true that often, either the U.S. or Mexico has an off year. I don't think the squads will meet in the final, for example. But one of the two will put it all together and make this tournament their own.
Counterattack runs every week on Goal.com
Talk all things soccer with the rest of our readers in the Goal.com Forums
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