Latest news with #CésarMontes
Times of Oman
20 hours ago
- Sport
- Times of Oman
Costa Rica and Mexico advance to Gold Cup Quarterfinals
Washington: Costa Rica secured their place in the CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinals after defeating the Dominican Republic 2-1 in their second match of Group A of the tournament, co-hosted by the United States and Canada. The Dominican Republic took an early lead in the 16th minute, but Costa Rica equalised just before halftime with a 44th-minute penalty. The Ticos sealed the victory in the 85th minute when scored the decisive goal. In another match of Group A, Mexico booked their quarterfinal spot with a 2-0 victory over Suriname. César Montes scored both goals for El Tri in the 57th and 63rd minutes. With this result, Mexico now leads the group with a perfect six points, holding a one-goal advantage over second-placed Costa Rica, who also have six points. Both Suriname and the Dominican Republic remain pointless after two matches. The final group stage match between Mexico and Costa Rica will now determine the group winner and runner-up, though both teams have already secured knockout stage berths. According to the tournament format, the Group A winner will face the runner-up of Group D - which includes the United States, Saudi Arabia, Haiti, and Trinidad and Tobago - in the quarterfinals. The Group A runner-up will play against the Group D winner. The 16-team tournament features four groups of four teams each, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the knockout stage.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Mexico defeat Suriname to reach Gold Cup knockouts
Mexico found it tough but ultimately defeated Suriname to advance to the quarter-finals of the Gold Cup. Scorers: Montes 57', 63' It was a frustrating first-half for the Mexicans as they struggled to create quality chances despite having two thirds of possession. Advertisement Eventually, Mexico broke the deadlock as César Montes was left completely unmarked on a corner, scoring a well-placed header without even needing to jump. Minutes later, Mexico doubled their lead with another goal from a corner. This time, Montes' header deflected back to him off a Suriname defender, allowing Montes to tap in his second goal of the match. Notably, four of Mexico's five Gold Cup goals have been scored directly off of corners. At full-time, Mexico joined Costa Rica in the Gold Cup knockout stage, while Suriname were eliminated with two losses. Javier Aguirre's side will finish top of Group A with a victory against Costa Rica on Sunday. 📸 Omar Vega - 2025 Getty Images
New York Times
a day ago
- Sport
- New York Times
César Montes' scoring instincts power Mexico past Suriname to advance to Gold Cup knockout stage
ARLINGTON, Texas — The defenders did it again for Mexico. With the attack not firing, center back César Montes showed his scoring instincts Wednesday, converting two goals from corner kicks in a 2-0 win for El Tri over Suriname. The result, which qualifies Mexico for the knockout stage of the Gold Cup with a match still left to go, comes just days after Edson Álvarez scored twice in the tournament opener against the Dominican Republic. Advertisement After a disappointing attacking showing in that match, despite ending in a 3-2 Mexico win, manager Javier Aguirre opted to change his formation. He shifted away from the two-forward setup he had been using, keeping Raúl Jiménez in the starting lineup and sending Santi Gimenez to the bench. Relentless playmaker Alexis Vega also earned his first start since leading Toluca to the Liga MX title. The switch back to the one-forward setup El Tri used for much of 2024 didn't pay immediate dividends, and the crowd of 34,015 at AT&T Stadium became antsy, with some fans booing the display as players headed into the locker rooms for halftime. They were on their feet in the 57th minute, however, as Montes opened the scoring. After a series of corner kicks, just before the hour mark that Suriname was able to defend, Mexico finally broke through. Vega's corner kick went directly to an unmarked Montes, and the defender's header inside the near post beat Suriname goalkeeper Etienne Vaessen. Vaessen had made three saves by that point but in the first half had mostly been happy to watch Mexico's best attacking moves end in efforts whizzing well past his goal — including a pair from Álvarez, who spent the entire night in the midfield after shifting from the middle of the field to center back in the previous match. Montes' second goal was much less straightforward. Taking a corner kick from the opposite side, Vega again found Montes in the box. His diving header bounced off the chest of a Suriname defender and fell to the feet of Mexico winger Julián Quiñones. But despite still lying on the ground, Montes' sweeping kick beat his teammate to the ball — and beat Vaessen for the second goal of the night. Mexico thought it had a goal from an attacker in the 75th minute, with second-half substitute Cesar 'Chino' Huerta putting the ball in the back of the net after he started a move and received a return pass from Ángel Sepúlveda. But the Cruz Azul forward was offside when he received the pass, and the goal didn't count. Advertisement Though El Tri is already in the quarterfinals, it'll look to top the group by beating Costa Rica in the final match of the group stage Sunday. The Tacos, who also won their first two matches and are into the next round, are led by manager Miguel 'Piojo' Herrera, who led Mexico into the 2014 World Cup and won the 2015 Gold Cup before being let go because of a physical confrontation with a commentator the next day. Aside from beating the well-known manager, who went on to win a Liga MX title with Club América in 2018 and also coached Tigres and Club Tijuana before arriving in Central America this year, Mexico will also look to ensure the friendliest matchup in the quarterfinals. The winner of that showdown will play the runner-up in Group D, the group currently topped by the United States. But a slipup from either of the North American rivals could lead to an early meeting between two teams that came into the tournament hoping to win the continental championship.
Washington Post
5 days ago
- Sport
- Washington Post
Mexico overcomes slow start to defeat Dominican Republic 3-2 in Gold Cup group stage
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Defending champion Mexico overcame a slow start to defeat the Dominican Republic 3-2 on Saturday night in a CONCACAF Gold Cup group stage match. West Ham midfielder Edson Álvarez opened the scoring in the 44th minute, Fulham striker Raúl Jiménez added a goal in the 47th and defender César Montes got another one in the 53rd.
Associated Press
5 days ago
- Sport
- Associated Press
Mexico overcomes slow start to defeat Dominican Republic 3-2 in Gold Cup group stage
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Defending champion Mexico overcame a slow start to defeat the Dominican Republic 3-2 on Saturday night in a CONCACAF Gold Cup group stage match. West Ham midfielder Edson Álvarez opened the scoring in the 44th minute, Fulham striker Raúl Jiménez added a goal in the 47th and defender César Montes got another one in the 53rd. Jiménez now has 40 goals with the Mexican national team and is six away from Jared Borgetti, in second place on the career scoring list for El Tri. Javier Hernández is Mexico's to scorer with 52. Mexico leads Group A with three points while the Dominican Republic is at the bottom. Costa Rica and Suriname, the other countries in the group, will face off on Sunday in Snapdragon stadium in San Diego. Peter González in the 51st minute and Edison Ascona in the 67th scored for the Dominicans, who earned their first qualification as one of the four group winners in League B of the CONCACAF Nations League. The match was played at SoFi stadium before 54,309 fans, most of them rooting for Mexico. There was uncertainty on how many Mexican fans would attend the match. On Friday, Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum urged U.S. officials not to target individuals attending the game. Dozens of workers have been detained by federal immigration authorities in a series of raids in LA's fashion district and at Home Depot parking lots in Southern California. More than 100 people have been detained. Mexico will try to qualify for the next round next Wednesday when they play Suriname while the Dominican Republic will play Costa Rica. Both matches will be played at the AT&T stadium in Arlington, Texas. ___ AP soccer:
