PREVIEW – Canada v Mexico will be a matchup for the second time in six months, as both teams recently played against each other in a scoreless draw on September 10, 2024. They will now face each other with more stakes as they enter the final stage of the 2024-25 Concacaf Nations League competition.
As for the FIFA Rankings provided by FIFA, the Canadians have an all-time high ranking as they are 31st in the world, while Mexico is ranked 19th in the world.
Note: The form does not count the two games Mexico had in January against club teams Internacional and River Plate.
Canada v Mexico: A Second Match in Six Months
Canada (4-1-0)
For the CANMNT, 2024 was a magical run. Yes, they were unfortunately unable to beat Uruguay. However, they were able to earn some solid results, which included making the final four of the 2024 Copa América competition as well as beating the U.S. on the road for the first time in over 50 years. The Canadians also beat Panama 2-1 at home in BMO Field and drew with Mexico in the U.S.
READ MORE: A Perfect CANMNT Performance and Win at BMO Field
This included the Canadians earning two solid wins against Suriname at home and on the road. These two wins were the reason why Canada will face Mexico in the Concacaf Nations League Final.
The story of the game might be getting both Daniel Jebbison, who plays for AFC Bournemouth of the Premier League, and Promise David, who plays for Union SG of the Belgian Pro League. This is what CANMNT captain, Alphonso Davies, said about Jebbison and P. David.
“It’s exciting,” Davies said. “These two are top players, obviously Niko as well. I think most of the guys are buzzing. We’re happy to have the calibre of players like them, big stature physically, playing at a top level. We’re excited to have them here and to see what they can bring.”
It is unlikely that Jebbison and P. David will get much playing time because of the depth of forwards Canada has with Jacob Shaffelburg, Jonathan David, and Davies. However, at the same time, both Jebbison and P. David could make an impact off the bench when needed in this competition.
READ MORE: CANMNT 2025 CNL Finals Roster: Two Promising Forwards
Mexico (3-1-1)
For Mexico, 2024 can be considered a bit of a disappointment. They narrowly missed out on qualifying for the quarterfinals stage of the 2024 Copa América competition. For the rest of the year, they got mostly positive results. They beat New Zealand 3-0 before drawing with Canada. Then, in October, Mexico probably had the biggest win in 2024, with a 2-0 win against the U.S. at home.
Unlike Canada though, Mexico had a bit of a rocky road to the Concacaf Nations League Final. They lost on the road 2-0 to Honduras and had to win at home by at least a two or three-goal advantage. Mexico was able to do that and won 4-0 at home against Honduras, winning the aggregate 4-2 as they now head to Los Angeles. This is how the second leg of the game happened according to Robert Casillas of Sports Illustrated:
This might be what Canada expects with Mexico likely having a lot of fans in Los Angeles, California. However, there is a big difference between playing in Mexico and playing in the U.S. There is also a difference in quality between Canada and Honduras. Still, the CANMNT will know what to expect come Thursday evening in California with their experience playing the U.S. last year as well as being part of the 2024 Copa América competition.
READ MORE: Mexican National Team Roster
Players To Watch Out For
This is what Mexico’s head coach, Javier Aguirre, said about Raúl Jiménez, as an important player for the national team on and off the pitch and also specifically about the win against the U.S. (Source: Cesar Hernandez of ESPN):
“He came back very well [from his injury], very well. He’s scored goals, he’s made assists. He looks mature and in good form, having completely overcome his injury. I think he is definitely a leader for us,” Aguirre said post-game. “A very important player for us.”
Jiménez plays for Fulham FC and has scored 17 goals in 53 appearances for the club. He has also scored 35 goals in 107 appearances for the Mexican national team.
As for Canada, there are two players that should be highlighted. The first one is Alistair Johnston, the Scottish premiership right-back for Celtic FC. This is what the CANMNT head coach, Marsch, said about Johnston (Source: Footy Prime Podcast):
Johnston was probably Canada’s best player in the 2024 Copa América competition. He had injuries later that year after the Copa América competition ended for the CANMNT. Still, he is a top-class player who has performed exceptionally against big teams such as FC Bayern Munich. This is the stats provided by Fotmob seen in Tom Nightingale’s article for the Canadian Soccer Daily:
There is of course Jonathan David, who was the highest-ranked Canadian national team player (and one of only two Concacaf players ranked in the top 100 players in the world according to The Guardian). This is how Marsch describes David with high praise:
“I’ve advertised him often as the most intelligent footballer I’ve ever coached,” Marsch told reporters, including Canadian Soccer Daily, on a media Zoom call on Thursday. “His ability to put things to practice, his ability to read in the game, what’s necessary. He’s really clever.”
David leads the national team all-time in goals scored and was named the 2024 CANMNT Player of the Year. This includes scoring goals in big games with high stakes like Peru, Uruguay, and the U.S. last year. He also is third in the Ligue 1 league with 24 goals scored. To add to that, David is the second-highest goal-scorer ever with Lille OSC by scoring 105 goals, with only André Strappe ahead of him with 112 goals scored.
Head-to-Head Matchups Between These Two Teams
Canada does not have a good record against Mexico. The Mexicans hold a 24-10-4 record against the Canadians. However, since 2021, when the CANMNT standard was at a different level than previous national teams, it is an even 1-2-1 record between the two teams. Mexico eliminated Canada from the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup, but Canada had the upper hand in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers, drawing at Estadio Azteca, and then winning at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, Alberta.
Since then, both teams have only met each other once in a friendly last year, which ended in a scoreless draw for both teams.
READ MORE: Doneil Henry: The Hard-Nosed CANMNT Centre-Back
How To Watch the Canada v Mexico Game
READ MORE: The 2024 CANMNT Year Review: A Fairytale Year
The game will take place at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, United States at 10:30pm ET (7:30pm PT). In addition, at 7:00pm ET (4:00pm PT), the game between the U.S. and Panama, which will also take place at SoFi Stadium, is the other semi-final game.
The winner of both games will go to the final while the loser of both games will fight for third place in the 2024-25 Concacaf Nations League competition.
The game between Canada and Mexico will be televised nationally on TSN and RDS. In addition, all games will be shown live on OneSoccer, Telus, and FuboTV.
Men’s National Team Training Session
26 September 2022 – Dunajská Streda, SVK
Photo Credit: Canada Soccer Flickr Account by Beau Chevalier
