First-half flurry books Mexico's spot in Gold Cup semi-finals
![Mexico 3-0 Honduras: First-half flurry books El Tri's semi-finals spot. AFP](https://cdn.resfu.com/scripts/tmp_images/goal_orbelin-pineda-mexico_1spuycjqgxgw1199oixw3rwonn.png?size=1000x&lossy=1&ext=jpeg)
Mexico fired in three first-half goals to book their spot in the Gold Cup semi-finals with an emphatic 3-0 win over Honduras in Glendale on Saturday.
The holders dominated proceedings, marked by a 12-minute flurry of goals, and were good value for the win, with 13-4 shots and 64-36 per cent possession.
Rogelio Funes Mori, who netted a brace in El Tri's 3-0 group win over Guatemala, opened the scoring in the 26th minute, nodding in Luis Rodriguez's right-flank cross.
LA Galaxy midfielder Jonathan dos Santos doubled Mexico's lead in the 31st minute with a spectacular first-time volley. Orbelin Pineda added another seven minutes later, heading in Jesus Corona's well-weighted cross.
Mexico will face either Costa Rica or Canada in the semi-finals on Thursday, with Qatar progressing in Saturday's other quarter-final 3-2 over El Salvador.
July 25, 2021