Gimenez wins Gold Cup for Mexico with legendary individual goal

El Tri badly needed a win, and their best young player provided exactly what was required

Mexico badly needed a lift, and its brightest young star provided exactly what was required with an individual moment of brilliance to win the Gold Cup on Sunday night.

It’s been a difficult spell for El Tri, which was bounced from the World Cup group stage, humiliated by its closest rival in a continental semifinal and ousted two coaches within a span of less than a year.

The pressure was fully on Mexico for the Gold Cup, with the U.S. taking a roster that could somewhat charitably be described as a B-squad.

In fact, the oft-anticipated final between Mexico and the USMNT didn’t even materialize after B.J. Callaghan’s squad fell to Panama on penalties in the semifinal.

That set the stage for Mexico and Panama to face off in Sunday’s final at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, which was filled with green-clad fans hoping to see their side overcome the Central American underdogs.

But despite a number of Mexico chances, the match was scoreless through 88 minutes. El Tri had the better of play, with a goal waved off due to an offside call and several outstanding saves from Panama goalkeeper Orlando Mosquera.

But interim Mexico boss Jaime Lozano introduced Santiago Giménez as a substitute in the 85th minute. Three minutes later, the 22-year-old produced a moment Mexico fans will always remember.

Giménez held off Panama’s Harold Cummings near midfield, spun the defender around and then raced clear on goal. With only Mosquera to beat, he scuffed a shot into the far corner to send the stadium into raptures.

“It’s the biggest moment of my career,” Giménez said in quotes published by the AP. “I just tried to get down the field quickly. We followed our principles throughout the game, and they worked perfectly. The result was great, because there were a lot of competitive teams in this tournament.”

Watch Gimenez’s Gold Cup winner

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