Curaçao 0 El Salvador 0
June 17 – The “Little General” – aka the Dutch master Dick Advocaat – has coached some of the biggest teams in world football, so Curaçao versus El Salvador in the Group B Concacaf Gold Cup opener at PayPal Park should be a walk in the park, right?
The answer was unfortunately a resounding no.
In a completely unremarkable first 45 minutes, the highlight came when El Salvador’s Jairo Henríquez fell to the turf claiming he had been manhandled by Mike Tyson himself, only to be helped to his feet by referee Katia García with barely a booking to show for his theatrics.
To give Advocaat credit, he did set up his team in a very hard-to-break-down compact 4-4-2 formation to negate El Salvador’s pace on the counter, but it didn’t make for a classic – something the Dutchman readily admitted in his post-game comments, saying “I could live with a 0-0.”
El Salvador also approached this fixture with pragmatic cautiousness. Their defensive shape was so rigid that it completely nullified their own attacking ambitions, creating a tactical stalemate that pleased neither set of supporters.
After the break, both sides seemed to remember they might need to win this thing if they could only start believing in themselves.
Curaçao’s Jearl Margaritha came closest to breaking the deadlock when he hit the bar. El Salvador responded with a speculative effort from distance, and that about summed up the entire encounter.
However, the adage in tournament play is “don’t lose your first game,” and both sides managed to uphold their end of that bargain.
In the grand scheme of Group B, this result leaves both teams in the hunt, but with Canada looking like the real deal, it may come down to who concedes the least to the mighty Maple Leafs.
Ultimately, Curaçao will need to rediscover their attacking swagger, while El Salvador must find a way to turn their defensive solidity into something more adventurous if they harbour serious ambitions of progressing.
As for the neutrals who tuned in expecting Caribbean flair to meet Central American passion?
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1750257397labto1750257397ofdlr1750257397owedi1750257397sni@r1750257397etsbe1750257397w.kci1750257397n1750257397