After an absolutely wild affair, the Concacaf Nations League final is set as the United States will face Canada after defeating Mexico 3-0 in Las Vegas on Thursday night. It was a match that ended early when the referee blew the whistle after only seven minutes of the 12 that were supposed to be played in stoppage time thanks to unrelenting homophobic chants from the Mexican fans in the crowd. It was chaotic in every which way, but the United States did what they needed to do to advance to the final.
The two goals that opened the gap between the USMNT and Mexico came from Christian Pulisic who scored both sides of halftime, but then wheels came off. Weston McKennie and Cesar Montes were both dismissed from the match, Montes for chopping down Folarin Balogun during a breakaway while McKennie was sent off due to his reaction during a coming together that saw him put his hands on the neck of a Mexican player.
Following that dismissal, Ricardo Pepi scored the third goal but red cards would again come to the fore with Sergino Dest and Gerado Artega also being sent off as both teams finished with nine men. The ultimate tally was four reds and nine yellows, but also three goals for the Americans who are through to the Concacaf Nations League finals.
There were certainly performances to remember as the front three of Pulisic, Falorin Balogun and Tim Weah were fluid in attack and created chance after chance to open up Mexico's defense. This rounds the United States' unbeaten streak to six consecutive matches but it's the most emphatic victory during that run. Every part of this attacking corps, down to Gio Reyna playing as a 10, is starting to feel like a power that can compete with traditional powers around the world. There is still room to grow, but defeating Canada on Sunday will only grow that belief.
Of course, it doesn't matter how many goals they score if the team doesn't keep the ball out of the back of their net and the inclusion of Chris Richards is one of the reasons why Mexico had more red cards than shots on target during the match. Interchanging well with Miles Robinson, Richards didn't have the look of a player who only played 598 minutes for Crystal Palace this season. He'll have a tougher challenge against Jonathan David and Cyle Larin in Canada, but it's a step in the right direction.
For Mexico, while the chants are already a dark spot on the night, pressure is building on Diego Cocca. Only in charge of the national team for five matches he has only won two of those, against Surname and Guatamala. Time waits for no one in Mexican soccer and without a Gold Cup title, Cocca's seat could get quite hot. He's unlucky to have played the United States twice in that five match span but a once stout Mexico defense also concede five goals to this USMNT side during those games.
