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Gold Cup Player Ratings: Mexico 2-0 Nicaragua

Goal.com's Sylvestre Adame and Andrea Martinez rate the players' performances from Sunday's match.

Jul 6, 2009 4:26:22 AM

Miguel Sabah - Mexico-Nicaragua (Mexsport)

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Miguel Sabah - Mexico-Nicaragua (Mexsport)

Teams

MEXICO

Guillermo Ochoa 5.5 - Ochoa was barley tested and on the three occasions that he was, the shots were fairly easy to stop.

Jonny Magallon 6 - Magallon had an off night. No, he was not playing poorly, there was just very little to do in the back. He held a very good line and showed very good passing.

Ismael Rodriguez 6 - Not much to say about Rodriguez; he just did his job, although it wasn't very hard today.

Jose Antonio Castro 6 - The only smudge for Castro on the day was the yellow that he picked up late in the game. He will have to be more cautious in Mexico’s next game in order to not accumulate a second yellow.

Fausto Pinto 6.5 - Pinto put in some extra work down the flanks and did a fine job. He also had very precise passing and would drift upwards since there was no threat at the back.

Gerardo Torrado 5 - Again seemed to be stagnant in this game. Torrado seemed lost throughout and his challenges needed some work. His passes also lacked in consistency.

Luis Miguel Noriega 6.5 - Noriega had a big first half and seemed to be involved in a lot of the plays for Mexico. He coolly took the penalty for El Tri’s first goal.

Israel Martinez 5 - Martinez did not have a good game. It is clear that the left flank is solely dominated by Andres Guardado. Martinez missed a clear shot in front of the goal but, to his luck, his flop turned into a penalty.

Giovani Dos Santos 7 - Was active early on, trying his luck at goal, but his shots went wide. Dos Santos started fading in the second half as he was changed into the middle of the field. He had two more chances with his head but lacked the finishing touch.

Carlos Vela 3 - Received such a low score because he only played 11 minutes after going down with an injury.

Miguel Sabah 6.5 - Showed signs of promise early on in the game but then started fading. Sabah had his opportunities but was not able to find the net. He practically disappeared in the second half, touching the ball very little.

Substituions:

Alberto Medina 8 - Did a great job coming in for the injured Carlos Vela. Filtered the pass to 'Jagger' Martinez for the penalty, and assisted Pablo Barrera in Mexico’s second goal.

Pablo Barrera 7.5 - Showed more play down the left flank than Martinez; more confident and was precise on his passes. His confidence paid off late in the game when he slotted the ball past the 'keeper off a volley.

Carlos Esquivel 4 - Came in at the end of the game just to do some clean-up work. Esquivel may have had one or two touches total in the game.

NICARAGUA

Carlos Mendieta 6 - The Nicaraguan goalkeeper did a very good job keeping out the ball on several occasions.

David Solorzano 5 - Did very well in defence and helped save some close goals, but also gave away the penalty.

Carlos Alonso 5.5 - Came out to help up front, but also performed his defensive duties in the back.

Armando Collado 5 - Tried to help in attack, but lost his temper and that prevented him from fully getting into the last bit of the game as he was careful to not receive another yellow.

Silvio Aviles 5 - Had a quiet game, but helped out in some of the early attacks against the Nicaragua goal.

Armando Reyes 6 - Halted Medina on many occasions to stop a great part of the Mexican attack.

Milton Martinez 5 - Did OK in midfield, but wasn’t outstanding.

Wilbert Sanchez 5 - Went up front a few times, but nothing came of it.

Felix Zeledon 5.5 - Helped save an early goal early in the first half, and greatly helped out in the defense.

Marlon Medina 5 - Wasn’t greatly present up front and besides a few appearances, did little else.

Samuel Wilson 6 - Caused the Mexican defence great troubles with his skills, but had no help out front to further his contributions.

Substitutions

Rudel Calero 5 - Came in trying to do something, but his physical game stopped him from doing anything significant.

Franklin Lopez 5 - Tried to help out front, but his help ended up in the stands most of the time.

Juan Barrera - N/A

Sylvestre Adame and Andrea Martinez, Goal.com

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