Our prediction for this Gold Cup match:
After sharing the spoils with South Korea in their last warm-up game, El Salvador will look to kick off their 2023 Gold Cup campaign in style when they take on Martinique at DRV PNK Stadium. La Selecta are on an eight-game winless run in all competitions, but the bookies still see them as favourites to win Monday’s encounter. Defender Bryan Tamacas is the most capped player (63) in Hugo Perez’s team.
Les Matinino, on the other hand, booked their place at the Gold Cup finals by beating Puerto Rico 2-0 in the decider. Martinique footballers are high on spirits ahead of the Group C opener, but home win should be considered as El Salvador are a more experienced side. When the two teams met at the 2003 Gold Cup El Salvador defeated Martinique 1-0 and we predict that history is going to repeat itself.
Highlighted Team (El Salvador):
El Salvador are a national football team that play their home games at Estadio Cuscatlan. La Azul y Blanco turned down an invitation from Brazil to take part in the 1950 World Cup finals, but in 1970 they made it to the finals of the showpiece tournament in Mexico 20 years later.
They participated at the 1982 World Cup finals as well, but they have yet to advance the first round of the finals competition. El Salvador hosted the first CONCACAF Championship, but they failed to win the trophy, with the team suffering a loss to Costa Rica in the title game. Speaking of the Central American and Carribean Games, la Selecta won the trophy on two occasions (1954, 2002) and in 1968 they booked their place at the Olympic Games in Mexico.
The likes of Magico Gonzales, Rodolfo Zelaya, Arturo Alvarez, Mauricio Cienfuegos, Ronald Cerritos, Raul Diaz Arce, Alexander Larin, Eliseo Quintanilla, Jaime Alas and Alfredo Pacheco are some of the notable footballers who played for El Salvador.