2015 Gold Cup Betting – Mexico vs. Panama

Mexico (-162) vs. Panama (+550), Draw (+240)

Thanks to a controversial last-minute penalty call, Mexico managed to get by Costa Rica in the quarters of the 2015 Gold Cup. Now up against a solid Panama squad in the semis tonight (9:00 PM Eastern at the Georgia Dome), El Tri will likely need a better performance in order to secure a spot in the finals and earn a chance to win their sixth tournament title.

The penalty call against the Ticos – which was converted by Andres Guardado – allowed Mexico to take a 1-0 lead with just one minute left in extra time. Mexico are the highest scoring team in the tournament thanks to a rout of Cuba (6-0) and a high-scoring draw with Trinidad & Tobago (4-4), but the goals have not come at regular intervals, with the team failing to find the net over 90 minutes against Guatemala (0-0) and then again against Costa Rica. A slew of missed chances in both those games have led pundits to slam the squad’s lack of focus in front of goal.

Despite the missed opportunities, Mexico are still alive and well in the 2015 tournament and can earn their seventh finals appearance in 12 tries with a win tonight. But they’ll have to overcome a Panama team that beat them twice in the 2013 edition and has yet to lose this year.

Unfortunately for the Panamanians, they’ve also yet to win at the 2015 Gold Cup (apart from a 1-1 game against Trinidad & Tobago in the quarters which they took on penalties). Panama drew all three of their Group Stage games by identical 1-1 scores; while the 1-1 draw with the US was a good result, the same can’t be said of their ties against Haiti and Honduras.

For the powers-that-be at CONCACAF, the best-case scenario is likely to have Mexico in the final; their fans travel extraordinarily well and bring money to the tournament; even Mexico’s manager, Miguel Herrera realizes this

“What surprises me is that Mexico fills the box offices and causes stadiums to sell out, [but] in all this process they have treated us differently, they have cut certain things,” Herrera said.

In the trends, the Mexicans have won the last two in the series – each by a goal. Look for the same to transpire tonight as El Tri avenge their 2013 defeats.

Pick: Mexico (-162).

(Photo credit: Celso FLORES from Paris, Fr [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons. Photo may appear cropped.)