Club America striker Henry Martín’s performance gave Mexico a 4-2 aggregate win over Honduras in the knockout rounds of the Concacaf Nations League.
Mexico, initially down 2-0 after last Friday’s away game, began the second leg in Toluca on Tuesday by putting immediate attacking pressure on the Honduran defensive line.
In a first half that included 14 shots on goal, El Tri consistently put their numbers forward and regularly tested opposing goalkeeper Edrick Menjivar. Honduras absorbed the pressure well and gradually tired the home team, who were starting to feel frustrated.
Then came Raúl Jiménez’s momentum-changing strike late in the first half.
Jimenez, who followed Chivas left defender Jesús Orozco Chiquete’s deep run with a low cross from the central defender, quickly stuck out his boot and blocked the ball into the Honduras goal in the 42nd minute of the first half.
After the half-time break, El Tri continued to look proactive with their attacking approach.
Photo credit: Manuel Velasquez/Getty Images
Mexico further strengthened its front line in the 66th minute, bringing on two all-round strikers as Cesar Huerta, Jorge Sánchez and Martin came off the bench. The gamble paid off for coach Javier Aguirre as he took a 2-0 lead into the second half.
In the 72nd minute, moments after receiving a corner kick cross from Alexis Vega, Jimenez slightly deflected the ball and doubled El Tri’s lead with Martin’s close-range shot.
After leveling the quarter-final series, Mexico’s confidence shifted, allowing them to add more goals to the scoresheet.
In the 85th minute, Vega had enough time to find an option in the final third and lofted a pass to Sanchez, who fired past Menjivar to make it 3-2.
Then, in the 97th minute, Martin cemented a dominant home performance by scoring a penalty goal that secured the score 4-2 by the final whistle.
With the result in hand, Mexico and Aguirre advanced to the semifinals of the Nations League and qualified for the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup. Honduras has the opportunity to advance to the Gold Cup for the second time through the preliminary round.
In the first leg of the quarterfinals last Friday, Aguirre was hit in the head with a beer can at Estadio Francisco Morazan in Honduras. Concacaf responded to the incident by suspending Honduras for one game and fining him, while launching a separate investigation into the Mexican coach’s actions during the game.
Aguirre downplayed the can-throwing incident that left him bleeding profusely from his head.
