Mexico vs Canada 2013: Victory Will Spur El Tri to Final Showdown vs. Team USA

After shockingly dropping a 2-1 decision to Panama in its opening Gold Cup group match, there was a ton of pressure on Mexico to turn things around. That is precisely what happened as El Tri came back with a convincing 2-0 victory over Canada, which will lead the Mexicans back to Gold Cup prominence.

No team has had more Gold Cup success over the years than Mexico, as it has won six titles as opposed to the United States' four. Mexico has won the past two Gold Cups by virtue of victories over Team USA. Mexico outscored the United States by a total of 9-2 in those two finals, but the teams are clearly more evenly matched this time around.

It's clear that Mexico didn't bring its best roster to the United States this year with stars such as Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez, Giovani dos Santos and Andres Guardado noticeably absent. That can be said for most teams in the tournament, though, so El Tri has to persevere and win with what amounts to a "B squad."

The opening loss to Panama came as a big surprise to most observers. Panama has gotten significantly better in recent years as evidenced by the fact that it is among six CONCACAF teams competing for a 2014 World Cup berth. Even so, Mexico has been the class of North and Central American soccer for many years, so seeing them fall to a rival team other than the United States is quite rare.

Mexico was still favored against Canada on Thursday, but with the team's confidence at an all-time low, it was a dangerous match nonetheless. El Tri has struggled mightily to score goals this year even with top stars in the lineup, so simply putting one in the back of the net is a major win for Mexico at this point.

Striker Raul Jimenez put Mexico up 1-0 in the 41st minute against Canada and midfielder Marco J.F. de la Mora notched an insurance marker in the 56th minute to ensure that the Mexican side would hang on. Although Canada is the only team other than Mexico or the United States to win a Gold Cup by virtue of their surprise triumph in 2000, it isn't considered a particularly strong team. Even so, it was a much needed victory.

With the win, Mexico moves into second place in Group A, according to FOX Soccer, and it is suddenly in ideal position to advance to the knockout stage.

Head coach Jose Manuel de la Torre can also breathe a bit easier as a loss to Canada might have spelled the end of his tenure as El Tri's boss.  Amazingly, Mexico's win over Canada was just the third victory of 2013 for the men's senior national team. Aside from a 1-0 decision over Jamaica, Mexico hasn't been able to buy a win in World Cup qualifying as they constantly end up drawing.

Maybe this win over Canada will give Mexico the momentum it needs to succeed in the Gold Cup and beyond. If nothing else, Mexico suddenly appears to be back in the driver's seat when it comes to reaching the Gold Cup final for a fourth consecutive time.

Even if Panama beats Canada as expected and hangs onto first place in Group A, Mexico should be fine. A win over Martinique would lock up second place, which would likely force El Tri to beat either El Salvador or Trinidad and Tobago in the quarterfinals before a rematch against Panama to reach the final.

Panama has beaten Mexico before and will probably have a ton of confidence on its side, but Mexico is ultimately the more talented and seasoned squad. Even without its best players, Mexico has no excuse if it doesn't reach the final. Provided Mexico is able to do that, a fourth straight showdown with the United States is a given.

Team USA is playing its best soccer in a very long time and its Gold Cup roster features arguably the greatest American soccer player of all time in the form of Landon Donovan. The United States dismantled Belize by a 6-1 score in its Gold Cup opener and it's hard to imagine the stars and stripes losing a match en route to the final.

Should the United States and Mexico meet in the final, Team USA will likely be favored, which is something that hasn't happened often over the course of this rivalry. Simply making it to the final would be big for Mexico, though, as 2013 has been a nightmarish year with plenty of disappointments.

Sometimes all it takes is one win to turn things around and Mexico finally got that all-important win by upending Canada on Thursday.

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