2023 Gold Cup, Day 3: Match thread and discussion

The 2023 edition of the Gold Cup marches forward with Group C taking the stage. All four teams will take the field with two matches on Monday as El Salvador takes on Martinique and Costa Rica faces Panama.

El Salvador is looking to take the next step after establishing themselves as a a tough minded team in World Cup qualifying. 2023 has been a difficult year so far for Los Cuscatlecos as the side has three losses and a draw across four matches. Their opponent Martinique qualified for the Gold Cup with wins against Saint Lucia and Puerto Rico in Ft. Lauderdale over the last two weeks. While El Salvador seem likely favorites, Les Matinino held a 1-0 lead over Costa Rica in a Nations League match in March before eventually losing in added time 2-1 and should not be overlooked.

In a matchup as old as time, Concacaf time at least, Panama and Costa Rica will feature in the second match of the evening. Los Ticos are coming back from a weird World Cup where they got crushed 7-0 by Spain and lost to Germany but also beat Japan, who beat both Spain and Germany, and were sent home last in their group. So far in 2023 the team has a win against Martinique and a loss against Panama in the Nations League followed by defeats to Guatemala and Ecuador in pre-Gold Cup friendlies. Panama notably played Argentina in a post-World Cup victory match in Buenos Aires, beat Costa Rica as mentioned, and lost to Canada in the Nations League semi-final before losing to Mexico in the 3rd place match. At the very least, both teams are very familiar with each other and the potential for a classic Concacaf match is in the cards.

How to watch

Group C - El Salvador vs. Martinique

Location: DRV PNK Stadium, Fort Lauderdale

Kick-off time: 6:30pm Eastern, 3:30pm Pacific

Available TV: FS1 (English), Univision (Spanish), TUDN (Spanish)

Available streaming: Fox Sports Go (App/Website), Univision (App/Website), TUDN (App/Website), FuboTV (Free Trial)

Group C - Costa Rica vs. Panama

Location: DRV PNK Stadium, Fort Lauderdale

Kick-off time: 8:30pm Eastern, 5:30pm Pacific

Available TV: FS1 (English), Univision (Spanish), TUDN (Spanish)

Available streaming: Fox Sports Go (App/Website), Univision (App/Website), TUDN (App/Website), FuboTV (Free Trial)

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