Gold Cup 2015: TV Schedule, Live Stream and Predictions for Friday Fixtures
The 2015 Gold Cup continues on Friday, with the four teams in Group A playing their second match of the tournament in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Fox Sports and BT Sport 2 will provide full coverage and live streams of both matches, as the United States take on Haiti and Honduras go head-to-head with Panama.
The Yanks struggled in their first match against Honduras but managed to pull out a 2-1 win, and following the draw between Haiti and Panama, the hosts are in perfect position to advance to the knockout stage. Jurgen Klinsmann's men could even clinch the group win on Friday, depending on the outcome of the match between Honduras and Panama.
Here's everything you need to know about Friday's matches.
| 6 p.m. | 11 p.m. | Honduras v Panama | Fox Sports 2/BT Sport 2 | Fox Soccer 2Go/BT Sport app |
| 8:30 p.m. | 1:30 a.m. (Next Day) | USA v Haiti | Fox Sports 1/BT Sport 2 | Fox Soccer 2Go/BT Sport app |
USA vs. Haiti
No, the USA's 2-1 win over Honduras wasn't pretty. Two Clint Dempsey goals sealed the result for the Stars and Stripes, who can't be happy with the way Honduras managed to disrupt their passing and were able to break up all attacking flow for large stretches of the match.
Fans weren't excited following the result, and Goal's Ives Galarcep suggests we could see a lot of changes to the starting XI heading into Friday's match against Haiti:
As reported by Goal's Alex Fischer, USA goalkeeper Brad Guzan knows the team didn't live up to their lofty standards, as he told reporters: "It's huge [to start with three points]. Any time you enter a tournament, you want to start off with three points and we were able to do that. We know it wasn't our best performance, [but] a sign of a good team is when you don't play well and you win the game and that's what we did."
On paper, Honduras are undoubtedly the toughest team the USA will face during the group stage, with Haiti sitting way back in the FIFA rankings. They shocked Panama with a late equaliser, courtesy of Duckens Nazon, and the team managed to create plenty of danger throughout the match, something most observers didn't expect.
The Haitians are a massive counter-attacking threat thanks to their speedy wingers and the likes of Kervens Belfort and Jean-Eudes Maurice, who commit to the break early and often knowing it's their best chance to score.
Haiti will likely keep plenty of men behind the ball and defend in numbers, so the Americans' passing will have to be on point in order to find success in this match. Both of Dempsey's goals against Honduras came from set pieces, and against the bigger Haitians, it should be harder to win the match in that area.
If there's one area Klinsmann could tinker with to fix the lack of space in the attacking third, it should be out wide. Having DeAndre Yedlin and Timothy Chandler gunning down the same flank didn't work at all, and Soccergods' Steve Davis couldn't help but make a joke at the expense of the two:
Dropping Chandler and moving Yedlin back a row seems like the sensible thing to do. The Tottenham Hotspur youngster has bags of talent, but against Honduras, he had a tendency to crowd the wide areas, blocking off passing lanes. The opposition routinely beat Chandler during that match―his lack of form is worrisome, and Klinsmann should notice and act on it.
Still, for all of the question marks surrounding the squad, Team USA have more talent than Haiti and will be playing in front of their own fans. Anything but a win on Friday will be considered a huge failure.
Final prediction: USA 3-1 Haiti
Honduras vs. Panama
In Group A's other match, Honduras will chase their first points of the tournament against Panama, who were the better team against Haiti but lost focus at a key time and conceded a late equaliser.
Boniek Garcia is expected to return to the squad for Honduras after missing the match against the USA with an ankle injury, and while he may not be able to start, he should at least give the side a spark off the bench.
Panama traditionally reserve their best football for the Gold Cup, twice making it all the way to the final in the last five editions, but they've entered this year's edition in dreadful form. Expect Honduras to apply pressure early, led by Andy Najar, who was excellent against the USA, per NBC Sports' Andy Edwards:
The Anderlecht winger has taken tremendous strides since moving to Europe, and while he struggled with the heat against the USA and was forced to leave the pitch earlier than he would have liked, big things are expected on Friday.
Najar uses his speed and trickery to devastating impact, but he really sets himself apart with his willingness to defend and do the little things in the middle of the park that separate the good from the great players.
Add Anthony Lozano to the mix, and Honduras just have too much talent in the attacking third not to find some sort of success against Panama.
Final prediction: Honduras 2-0 Panama
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