Raul Jimenez scores twice as Mexico downs Canada in CONCACAF Nations League semifinal

Canada's Ali Ahmed, left, trips as he fights for the ball against Mexico's Ernesto Vega, right, during the first half of a CONCACAF Nations League semifinal soccer match Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Inglewood, Calif. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Etienne Laurent

INGLEWOOD — Raul Jimenez stunned Canada with a first-minute goal and added another on a spectacular 75th-minute free kick for a 2-0 Mexico win Thursday in a frenetic, hot-blooded CONCACAF Nations League semifinal.

Jimenez’s brace derailed the 31st-ranked Canadian men’s push for a first trophy since the 2000 Gold Cup. Canada played the game in high gear, attacking the 19th-ranked Mexicans at pace, but could not convert that aggression into shots on target.

“They really wanted to win this. They really wanted to lift a trophy for the country,” said Canada coach Jesse Marsch. “They believe strongly in the team they are becoming. So it was like a knife in the heart to play well, to really do a lot of good things in the game but then fall short of the goal.

“That disappointment is hard to shake and it is a missed opportunity. But again I think in so many ways it’s still another step where we’re continuing to show our quality, our organization and our intelligence.”

The Mexicans will face Panama in the final while Canada takes on the U.S. in the third-place game, both Sunday at SoFi Stadium.

“It was a very even match. Maybe the final score didn’t reflect that but Canada took us to the limit,” Mexico coach Javier Aguirre said through an interpreter.

“It was not a perfect game but we were very, very good,” he added.

No. 36 Panama posted a 1-0 upset win over the 16th-ranked U.S. in the earlier semifinal at SoFi Stadium. Substitute Cecilio Waterman scored in the 94th minute on Panama’s lone shot on target to dispatch the three-time defending champions.

The Americans had 66.5 per cent possession and outshot Panama 12-3 (5-1 in shots on target) but could not break down a well-organized defence.

It was a disastrous start for Canada with an Alistair Johnston throw-in in his own end intercepted by Mexico. Two passes later, Jimenez was gifted the ball in the penalty box when the ball deflected his way off Alphonso Davies and he beat goalkeeper Dayne St. Clair with a low shot to the corner some 45 seconds after kickoff.

Canada appealed unsuccessfully for a penalty in the ninth minute when Mexican captain Edson Alvarez got a piece of Derek Cornelius in the penalty box, felling the Canadian defender.

“A just penalty,” said a disbelieving Marsch.

The Canadians pushed hard for a tying goal after digging themselves an early hole. But Jimenez, who plays his club football for England’s Fulham, delivered the coup de grace with a wonderful set piece from well outside the penalty box — bending the ball around the Canadian wall and past a diving St. Clair to seal the win.

The Canadians protested that Honduran referee Said Martinez had pushed their wall back too, helping Jimenez’s cause.

The Canada-Mexico contest was not for the faint of heart — an all-action, high-tempo affair compared to the drab U.S.-Panama game that only came alive in stoppage time. The Canadians were in high gear all night, with Marsch doing his bit — racing down the sideline early on to get the ball to speed up a Canadian throw-in.

Canadian defenders Moise Bombito, Davies and Johnston were booked in the 18th, 22nd and 33rd minute, respectively, for ill-timed tackles. Two Mexicans also went in the book in the first 45 minutes.

The game finished with each team getting three cautions.

Mexico soaked up the Canadian pressure and took its chances.

Canada finished with 57.4 per cent possession and outshot Mexico 11-8 but only managed to put one shot on target compared to Mexico’s three. The lone shot came from Davies on a 31st-minute free kick that went straight at Mexican goalkeeper Ángel Malagon.

“We should have been able to create more given the way that we were pushing the game,” said Marsch.

Alvarez’s headed goal off a free kick in the 39th minute was negated by the offside flag. And it was Alvarez to the rescue in the 61st minute when he headed the ball to safety before Cornelius could knock it into an unprotected Mexico goal.

Jacob Shaffelburg came on for Canada in the 60th minute, followed by Mathieu Choiniere, Tajon Buchanan, Tani Oluwaseyi and Daniel Jebbison, who made his Canadian debut in the 80th minute.

It marked Canada’s first outing since Nov. 19 when it blanked Suriname 3-0 in Toronto to complete a 4-1 aggregate win in the Nations League quarterfinal.

The Canadian men were unbeaten in their previous five matches (4-0-1) since last summer’s Copa America.

They came into the game with a 5-21-10 all-time record against Mexico but were unbeaten in the three most recent meetings (1-0-2) including a famous 2-1 World Cup qualifying win in the snow at Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium in November 2021.

Canada fell to 5-4-5 under Marsch, with one of those ties turning into a penalty shootout loss to No. 11 Uruguay and another to a shootout win over No. 47 Venezuela at Copa America.

The Nations League is worth $2 million (all figures in U.S. dollars) to the winner with the runner-up collecting $1 million. Third place is worth $600,000 with $200,000 going to the fourth-place side.

Canada placed fifth (2019-20), second (2022-23) and fifth (2023-24) in the three previous editions of the CONCACAF Nations League.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 20, 2025