Mexico 3-1 El Salvador: El Tri kick off 2017 Gold Cup campaign with strong win

El Salvador gave Mexico some problems, but El Tri got it done

By Roger Gonzalez

Jul 9, 2017 at 10:10 pm ET • 1 min read

Mexico earned three points on Sunday as it began its Gold Cup campaign, beating El Salvador 3-1 in Group C play. It was a fine display from El Tri, and even though El Salvador showed some potential in attack, the reigning Gold Cup champs had too much in the end, scoring all three of their goals before the hour mark.

Hedgardo Marin opened Mexico's scoring account in the eighth minute with a beautiful header off a set piece:

#ElTri got off to a quick start with this 8th minute goal from Marin! @ModeloUSA #ModeloSoccer #GoldCup2017 #MEXvSLV https://t.co/mod4lGF5an
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 10, 2017

But El Salvador responded well, with Nelson Bonilla scoring a beauty two minutes later:

El Salvador responds! Bonilla slots home the equalizer 2 minutes after Mexico's goal. @ModeloUSA #ModeloSoccer https://t.co/IE2Wc5NVGF
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 10, 2017

But it didn't remain level long, as Elias Hernandez's 29th-minute golazo was enough:

🚨GOLAZO!🚨

Elias Hernandez puts home this sweet volley to make it 2-1 Mexico. @ModeloUSA #ModeloSoccer #GoldCup2017 https://t.co/UKns0jaxGm
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 10, 2017

And for good measure, Orbelin Pineda scored Mexico's third on 55 minutes, cementing the result. With the win, Mexico has three points in the group with matches against Jamaica and Curacao remaining. With the result, El Tri is all but through to the quarterfinals and probably only needs a point to advance.