The semifinals of the 2015 Gold Cup kick off on Wednesday as the stage is set for the final four teams to go head-to-head in Atlanta, GA for what should be some of the best matches of the tournament.
The United States and Jamaica will get things started, followed by Mexico and Panama. Only two of these four teams will make the finals, while the two losing teams will move on to a third place match to be held on Saturday.
The United States easily won Group A with 7 points and a 2-0-1 record. By the time they tied Panama 1-1, they had already clinched the top spot in the Group and rested many of their starters including Golden Boot leader, Clint Dempsey.
Team USA got an easy draw in the quarterfinals with a Cuba squad who limped in to the knockout stages and had to deal with multiple players on their team defecting to the United States. America easily demolished Cuba 6-0, and Dempsey netted a hat trick, giving him five total goals for the tournament. Jamaica will not be as big of a pushover as Cuba was.
For many people, Wednesday's match with Jamaica is the "real" Final as most experts believe that Jamaica and USA are the two best teams remaining in the tournament. Panama, barely escaped Group A in their last group match against the U.S. and Mexico has been widely inconsistent throughout the tournament.
Nonetheless, Mexico and the United States appear to be on a collision course for the Gold Cup Final, with the record for most Gold Cup titles hanging in the balance. Mexico owns six Gold Cup titles, the most all-time, but the United States has won the tournament five times, and are the current defending champions.
Michael Bradley is one of the best midfielders in the tournament, and he will look to find Dempsey early and often. Omar Gonzalez had a good bounce back game against Cuba and even scored a goal in the match. His teammate with the LA Galaxy, Gyasi Zardes, has looked great up front, overwhelming the CONCACAF region with his speed and athleticism.
America has hung their hat on defense during this tournament, and will need another stellar performance in net by goalkeeper, Brad Guzan. Guzan has been the man between the pipes for team USA while Tim Howard is taking a rest from the National team (ironically, Howard announced he was ready to return on Wednesday).
Jamaica poses the toughest challenge to date as the United States seek to defend their crown. They are vastly different then the United States. They have one of the top defenses in all the world, and lack firepower on offense. Jamaica is known for dropping their midfielders back to create almost an extra line of defense for teams to try and penetrate. After allowing two goals in their first game, Jamaica buckled down and has not conceded a goal since.
Unlike the U.S. and Mexico, Jamaica has never won the Gold Cup tournament, and is seeking their first CONCACAF title. They won the Caribbean Cup in 2014, and dominated Group B to get to this point.
Ryan Thompson will start in net for Jamaica and look to continue his streak of clean sheets. In front of Thompson will be Jermaine Taylor and Demar Phillips. In the midfield, captain Rodolph Austin and Garath McCleary will try and move the ball forward, while dropping back on defense for a majority of the match.
Jamaica will need an early goal to win this game, but have the defense to shutout the U.S. or send it to penalties.
Prediction: 2-0 USA
Betting Favorite: USA -1
Over/Under: 2.5 goals
The United States take on Jamaica with a trip to the 2015 Gold Cup Final on the line on Wednesday, July 22, at 6:00PM EST from the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The game will air live on Fox Sports 1, and can be live streamed here. If you prefer to watch the game on your mobile device, please download the Fox Sports Go app from your app store.
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