Mexico Beats Curacao to Secure Top Spot in Group C in 2017 Gold Cup

Mexico earned a 2-0 victory over Curacao in the Alamodome in San Antonio at the 2017 Gold Cup to claim the top spot in Group C and advance to the quarterfinals.

Angel Sepulveda scored the opening goal for Mexico, and Edson Alvarez provided an insurance goal in the first minute of second-half injury time.

In its previous match, Mexico struggled to break down an organized Jamaican defense. The two teams played to a 0-0 draw, with El Tri getting six shots on target over the 90-plus minutes.

On Sunday, Mexico only had to wait 22 minutes before Sepulveda got them on the board. His header was placed perfectly at the far post, leaving Curacao goalkeeper Eloy Room no chance to make the save.

ESPN FC's Tom Marshall praised the delivery from Raul Lopez:

With Mexico taking an early lead, most expected El Tri to continue throwing numbers forward and taking advantage of a Curacao team that was already eliminated from possibly advancing and had allowed four goals in two games.

Instead, Mexico needed a fantastic performance Jose de Jesus Corona in order to preserve the victory. Corona was particularly pivotal during a frenzied sequence in the 56th minute.

The Cruz Azul goalkeeper saved Gino van Kessel's close-range effort and then appeared to get his fingertips to a shot by Gevaro Nepomuceno that caromed off the crossbar and out of danger for Mexico.

KICK provided an accurate summary of Corona's one-man show:

Fox Deportes' Mariano Trujillo didn't feel enthusiastic about Mexico's performance to that point considering how important Corona had been:

Curacao's defense wore down the longer the match went on. Room made a great save on an Elias Hernandez shot in the 81st minute and another on a header by Jair Pereira in the 86th minute.

Room gambled on Alvarez's shot in the 91st minute, running off his line to close down the Club America defender. He was too late, however, to prevent the 19-year-old from curling a right-footed shot inside the right post.

The 2-0 scoreline flatters Mexico somewhat, with ESPN FC's Eric Gomez tweeting how desperate the team had been late in the second half prior to Alvarez's goal:

With Sunday's win, Mexico will play Honduras on Thursday in the quarterfinals. Most importantly, it was drawn in the opposite half of the bracket as the United States, so the two countries would face off in the final should they meet.

While El Tri are unbeaten through their first three matches, they'll likely need to improve in the knockout stages if they're going to defend their Gold Cup crown, especially if they meet their neighbors to the north in the final on July 26.