Giovani Dos Santos Should Start for Mexico in Gold Cup Group Finale

As the second half wore on and Mexico remained locked in a scoreless draw with Guatemala in the CONCACAF Gold Cup on Sunday night, the partisan crowd began to chant the name of the man they wanted to see: "Gio, Gio, Gio." Miguel Herrera finally relented, introducing Giovani Dos Santos in the 83rd minute, but by that time the 26-year-old had precious little time to turn the match around.

The result held and Mexico were frustrated after dominating possession and creating the game's best chances. With four points through two matches, El Tri now must defeat Group A leaders Trinidad and Tobago on Wednesday in Charlotte, North Carolina. To do so, Herrera would be wise to consider Dos Santos in a starting role ahead of Oribe Peralta.

The reasons are simple and should be relatively obvious. Peralta, despite scoring a hat-trick against an overmatched Cuba side in the opener, has not played particularly well so far in the Gold Cup. Dos Santos, on the other hand, has a long history of playing with Carlos Vela in Mexico's attack and could forge a more dangerous attacking partnership with him. Tom Marshall notes at ESPN FC:

"

Dos Santos' history with Vela goes back to the 2005 Under-17 World Cup and the two are good friends off the field. It must be time to see if that chemistry can be rekindled on the field.

Herrera seems to prefer a center forward who is a true number nine and can stretch the opposition defense, but surely Vela could play that role, while Dos Santos plays off him.

What is certain is that Peralta didn't do himself any favors on Sunday with a lackluster display and by missing a golden opportunity from short-range in the 75th minute.

"

Peralta is not the only one. With Sunday's scoreless draw, Mexico reinvited intense scrutiny only days after apparently moving past it. Following a disappointing showing in the Copa America, Herrera was under pressure to produce both the Gold Cup title and impressive performances along the way.

In routing Cuba by six goals, El Tri seemed to be on the right track. But against Guatemala's physical and disciplined defending, Mexico failed to produce the necessary quality in the final third.

Ringo H.W. Chiu/Associated Press

"In reality, the team played well," Herrera said, per USA Today. "We controlled the ball and knew what we were doing left, right and middle of the pitch. We had a lot of shots, it's just that nothing happened. It's a situation where we couldn't score but I'm fine with the way we played."

Dos Santos added a spark after coming on, sending a deflected shot off target in the 86th minute. Guatemala failed to clear the ensuing corner, and another substitute, Carlos Esquivel slammed a long-distance shot off the crossbar.

If Herrera had given Dos Santos more time on the pitch, it's possible the 26-year-old could have helped Mexico unlock Guatemala's defense. The truth is that we'll never know, but it's clear that the alternative didn't work against the Central American side's well-organized resistance.

Follow @MiguelCominguez