March 8 to 28, 2021 (World Cup Qualifiers [CONCACAF])

A Chapter by Steve Clark

The following article provides an oversight for matches and tournaments taking place in 2021.

March 8 to 28, 2021 (World Cup Qualifiers [CONCACAF])

World Cup Qualifiers

World Cup Qualifiers in CONCACAF ramped up this month.

In Group A, after the loss last year to Mexico, El Salvador managed only a draw at home against Guyana. The match hit its peak right before the break, where Enrico Hernández finished a fast break, curling the ball with his right boot. However, Guyana caught the hosts napping, and Emery Welshman immediately responded with his own left foot tucking away the equaliser. El Salvador had the better of the play in the second half, only they were unable to overcome some steely defence.

Panama salvaged a key away draw against Mexico, after Luís Mejía dived correctly to save Raúl Jiménez’s penalty. From there, the Mexicans were wasteful in front of goal, and were unable to gain more than the solitary point.

Curaçao thumped three goals against a hapless Puerto Rico, with Charlison Benschop, Jarchinio Antonia and Leandro Bacuna. Benschop’s goal came from long range, while his teammates two pocketed from inside the box. Puerto Rico had two key chances to score, with Sidney Rivera’s penalty saved, which would have made it 1-1 at the time, and a shot thudding the post when the game was already over at 3-0.

Seven days later, Puerto Rico made changes in midfield and defence in the hope of defeating El Salvador, also looking for a win. Rivera made up for his missed penalty with a third-minute header. However, he was injured coming down after another attempt in the box, and struggled to keep playing. From there, the hosts kept up the pressure, though wayward shots kept the El Salvadorians in the game. With ten minutes from time, right back Bryan Tamacas finished off a fast break with a goal. It would not be, for Rivera’s replacement, Kevin Hernández, teamed up with another substitute in Wilfredo Rivera with less than a minute in regulation time to gift Puerto Rico the full three points.

Raúl Jiménez also made up for his missed penalty with a brace against Guyana. Both goals were of high quality; the first was a header that nipped the inside of the post, and gave the Guyana goalkeeper no hope, while the second was a fake shot that sent the goalkeeper the wrong way before tucking his second into the back of the net. Guyana held their own with Mexico early, though they looked shaky in defence for periods.

Curaçao’s Bacuna scored two goals in two games with an early goal where his shot had enough momentum to trickle over the line. However, an early injury to Antonin, plus a red card to Michael Maria after taking out another player, meant Panama were able to work back into the game. Édgar Yoel Bárcenas missed the ensuing penalty; however, José Luis Rodríguez headed the resulting corner into the back of the net. Late in the match, substitute Gabriel Torres managed to tuck home the winner after Curaçao’s defence were desperate in stopping Torres’ teammates from scoring. Panama came away with four points from two away games.

Six days later, Guyana travelled to Puerto Rico, and looked more likely to score than the hosts in the early stages of the match. However, Puerto Rico grasped hold of possession and scored late via a Sidney Rivera chip shot. The home side should have been up 3-0 at the break, only poor accuracy prevented such a scoreline. Devin Vega doubled the lead in the 71st minute with a beautiful Rivera pass as Vega led in from the right flank. Puerto Rico eased into the end of the March Qualifiers in a better place, having bounced back from their 3-0 defeat against Curaçao.

Panama scored three goals to recover from their loss to Curaçao, with three different goal scorers. Bárcenas and Rolando Blackburn both scored with their head; Bárcenas’ shot coming off a cross from the right flank, while Blackburn’s came from the left flank. Player of the Match Abdiel Ayarza then scored as he led onto a through ball that cut open the El Salvadorian defence, leaving the away side with their tails between their legs.

Curaçao and Mexico played out a scoreless draw, with both sides hitting the woodwork in the hopes of taking the lead. Defensively, both teams were sound, and though Mexico looked more dangerous up front, Curaçao certainly held their own.

	CONCACAF WCQ Gr A	Pl	W	D	L	Pts	GD
1	Panama	4	3	1	0	10	+5
2	Mexico	4	2	2	0	8	+5
3	Puerto Rico	4	2	0	2	6	-1
4	Curaçao	4	1	2	1	5	+2
5	Guyana	4	0	2	2	2	-4
6	El Salvador	4	0	1	3	1	-7

Group D saw Costa Rica host Honduras in the opening match of the March Qualifiers. The visitors only had one real chance in the second half, as Costa Rica dominated across the pitch. However, they could not capitalise on that, with their best shot a penalty miss by Ariel Lassiter, who is likely not to see more game time after a poor performance. In the end, the match ended 0-0.

St Kitts and Nevis, on the other hand, scored four goals past Barbados. Lois Maynard opened the campaign, heading into an open net after an initial shot was saved. Gerard Williams, playing in the midfield, then backed that choice in the second half, shooting low and into the bottom corner. Rowan Liburd scored a quick brace to give St Kitts and Nevis the best start possible. The only sour note was Yohannes Mitchum’s broken ankle in the second half, after Barbados’ Hallam Hope also gained an injury in the first period.

Cuba’s Luis Paradela continued his scoring ways with a goal in the eighth minute, a taking one touch on a through ball before shooting to the right of the Nicaraguan goalkeeper. Maykel Reyes then doubled the lead after the break, before Ariagner Smith made it a tight finish. The score: 2-1.

Richard Rodríguez scored early five days later for Nicaragua as they sought to gain three points against Honduras. The midfielder made the most of a poor clearance, putting the hosts ahead. Honduran striker Bryan Moya, however, had other ideas as he levelled right before the break. Honduras had the chances in the second half, only for each to miss, as did Nicaragua at the death. Honduras gained a second, and vital, away draw.

Costa Rica flew to St Kitts and Nevis in the hope of gaining full points. Bryan Ruíz scored in the 35th minute, taking on the St Kitts defence and snagging a goal through the legs of a defender. St Kitts showed grit and did not let another goal past, though their attack needed more finishing as they had in the match the week before.

Cuba gained a second win at home, this time 3-0 to Barbados. Player of the Match Asmel Núñez set up both Reyes and Paradela for their respective goals in the shadows of the halftime break. Reyes, scoring his second goal in two games, hit the woodwork before the ball bounced over the line. Paradela then headed into the top left corner of the goal after Núñez crossed with perfection to him. The midfielder backed it up in the second half with a goal of his own, shooting from the edge of the box to ensure Cuba’s victory.

Six days later, Costa Rica brought Cuba back down to earth with a 3-1 victory. �"scar Duarte scored in the 27th minute, heading out of reach of the Cuban goalkeeper off a corner kick. Joel Campbell doubled the lead right before the break, also using his head to outsmart the goalkeeper. Paradela edged one back for the visitors, setting up a hair-raising final 23 minutes. It would not be, as substitute David Guzmán edged home the sealing goal, and giving Costa Rica every chance of advancing to the World Cup.

Honduras is their other main rival, who looked like drawing at home to St Kitts and Nevis. However, late goals from Bonieck Garcia and Andy Najar ensured the three points. Garcia scored off the post, finishing off a brilliant team goal. Najar, the right back, advanced as Honduras put a strangle hold on St Kitts, and won the clearance before snagging Honduras’ second goal.

Barbados could not score against Nicaragua for long periods of time, mostly due to the midfielders not shooting with any power, and the strikers not shooting on target. Down the other end, Nicaragua failed to bypass last-gasp defence to wrestle three away points. Finally, late in the match, Barbadian right midfielder Jomo Harris curled a shot into goal, before substitute Ryan Trotman pocketed a penalty to earn Barbados a crucial win against what may become their rivals down the lower end of the Group D table.

	CONCACAF WCQ Gr D	Pl	W	D	L	Pts	GD
1	Costa Rica	4	3	1	0	10	+5
2	Cuba	4	3	0	1	9	+3
3	Honduras	4	1	3	0	6	+2
4	Barbados	4	1	1	2	4	-5
5	St Kitts and Nevis	4	1	0	3	3	0
6	Nicaragua	3	0	1	3	1	-5

Group C saw a new-look Guatemala side host Trinidad and Tobago. The match seemed like a tennis game; to and fro, all in the middle of the park. Only the first shot was registered in the 38th minute. However, it was Trinidad and Tobago who scored the solitary goal of the match via a corner and the head of Joevin Jones. From there, Guatemala looked a mere pawn in the match as the visitors’ defence held them at bay.

Montserrat started their March matches off with a blast, scoring four goals in the first half against the Dominican Republic. Kaleem Strawbridge-Simon, Rohan Ince, Jamie Allen and James Comley all scored with ease. Strawbridge-Simon was set up to take a shot from outside the box that defied gravity and sailed into the back of the net. Ince curled with his left in similar fashion, around a diving Dominican Republic goalkeeper. Allen looped a header from the corner over the goalkeeper before he set up Comley with a looping cross onto his head. In the second half, Allen brought about his brace straight after the break. Monserrat kept peppering, only to not score again, though 5-0 was clearly a comprehensive win.

The Americans started with a tough match against the Bahamans, with a 2-1 win and a red card. Joshua Sargent made the most of the US dominance with a chip shot over the goalkeeper. However, Miles Robinson gave away a penalty, and was sent off in the process as the final defender. Lesly St Fleur stepped up and made no mistake. Ricardo Pepi had to come off the bench in the second half to restore the lead, and though with 10 men, the Americans held firm.

The Dominican Republic and Trinidad and Tobago played out a scoreless draw, with the hosts having the better chances, only to fail to score again for their second game in a row. At least their performance was better than their 5-0 drubbing.

The Bahamas and Montserrat also failed to score in their match. The Bahamans had the better of the play and the chances, especially at the end, only to shoot wide of the mark.

The US made two changes to their side, partially thanks to the red card by Robinson. That made a great difference as the Americans trounced Guatemala 5-1. Player of the Match Kellyn Acosta gathered a brace, with his first along the ground, outstretching his opponent for the toe shot. His second was a volley from the left flank cross. Sargent scored in between these two goals, cutting his run to the front post as the ball also came in from the left flank. Guatemalan Luis Martínez did restore confidence for a result. However, with Acosta’s second, followed by a choice goal from Pepi, his second in two games, the result was in the bag. Substitute Gyarzi Zardes then copied Acosta with a volley as the left wing runs became their power move.

The Dominican Republic made one key change in Ernesto Trinidad coming into the side in the hope of scoring goals. Instead, it was the switch of Jean Carlos López to the right flank that made the difference. Their opponents, Guatemala, looked the goods for an early goal, only for the hosts to wrestle back the momentum. Right before halftime, Carlos López scored with his head, giving the Dominicans the lead. Guatemala threw everything at the defence late, only to come up short, gaining their third loss in March alone.

Trinidad and Tobago scored four to the Bahaman’s one in a match poised to set up future matches. Ryan Telfer opened the tale, only for Peter Julmis to peg one back for the vistors. However, Levi García restored the lead before halftime, and Justin García scored twice in two minutes to ensure a solid victory.

The Americans travelled to Montserrat on a chance to gain a vital victory. While they had much of the play in the first half, the hosts handled the pressure well. Then, in a brilliant display of fifteen minutes of football, the Montserrat side attacked, leaving the Americans to the wake as Brandon Comley scored along the ground. USA threw everything for the last half hour at Montserrat; however, the hosts managed to keep them away from goal and thus win a vital three points, as well as bragging rights at the end of the March period of games.

	CONCACAF WCQ Gr C	Pl	W	D	L	Pts	GD
1	Trinidad and Tobago	4	3	1	0	10	+6
2	Montserrat	4	2	1	1	7	+2
3	USA	4	2	0	2	6	+2
4	Dominican Republic	4	1	2	1	5	-4
5	Guatemala	4	1	0	3	3	-3
6	Bahamas	4	0	2	2	2	-4

Group B’s second through fourth Match Days started with a Jamaican and Bermuda draw. Shamar Nicholson scored for the hosts in the first half, before Kole Hall bounced the ball off Adrian Mariappa to claim the equaliser.

Haiti took charge of the match against St Vincent and the Grenadines, scoring three times to gain the upper hand in their mini rivalry. Sony Mustivar nailed home a goal in the first half, while substitute Frantzdy Pierrot and Wildedonald Guerrier scored late to ensure the full three points were safely theirs.

Canada started with a solid but unconvincing 2-0 win over Grenada. David Junior Hoilett nailed a goal early, before Kamal Miller came off the bench to fight for a place in the starting eleven with an easy goal.

Six days later, Bermuda travelled again, this time to St Vincent and the Grenadines. Kurtlon Williams scored first for the hosts, before Bermuda managed another away draw as Willie Clemons ensured they would not walk away empty handed.

Haiti scored late via substitute Ashkanov Appollon to upheaval a chance for Grenada to gain points. Grenada looked the more likely to score across the match, only to see Haiti wrestle the full three points away from them.

Alphonso Davies scored for Canada in their 1-0 win against Jamaica. The Jamaicans certainly played their heart out, though it was not enough as the home crowd had an effect, particularly in raising the roof after Davies scored.

Jamaica then flew to St Vincent seven days later, scoring first via Andre Gray for an easy tap in. This caused St Vincent to change to a back five, and Jamaica had to shift their attack. Kurtlon Williams and the hosts, however, had other ideas, and soon after the 60-minute mark, chipped the goalkeeper after a great series of team passes left him one-on-one. From there, though, neither side could find the finishing blow.

Canada hosted Haiti, and it all looked to be going swell, especially when Cyle Larin chipped the goalkeeper to open the scoring. However, defender Richie Laryea challenged Léverton Pierre in the box, earning himself a straight red card for being the last defender, and a penalty for Haiti. Pierre coolly slotted straight down the guts of the goal while the Canadian goalkeeper dived to his right. Haiti then held on in defence to claim a point away from home.

Bermuda only scored one goal against Grenada, even though they had the better of play for most of the game. Kane Crichlow was impeccable down the right wing and gained a goal after a back flick to him found him alone in the box. Willie Clemons also won a penalty, only for the weak kick to be saved by the Grenadian goalkeeper. Grenada only had a decent shot that hit the post in the second half, looking lacklustre across the 90 minutes. In the end, Bermuda gained the three points, their first win of the Qualifiers.