November 20, 2019

Manuel Velasquez/Getty Images

Mexico defeated Bermuda 2-1 in the CONCACAF Nations League on Tuesday at Estadio Nemesio Diez in Toluca, Mexico.
Uriel Antuna scored from close range in the third minute of second-half injury time to give the host all three points. Dante Leverock had put Bermuda ahead in the 10th minute before Sebastian Cordova brought Mexico level in the 27th minute.
Mexico, which had already assured itself of first place in Group B, finishes the group stage with a perfect record in four matches.
In what was a rare miscue by Bermuda’s back four, center back Jaylon Bather missed his header to clear away a pass by Raul Jimenez. That left Antuna all alone to slam home the winner.
A draw would have brought the same overall result for El Tri, who only needed one point to leapfrog Honduras on goal differential for the top seed in the knockout round.
With their semifinal berth already secured, they may have taken Bermuda a little too lightly. ESPN FC’s Tom Marshall also questioned whether the location—Toluca is more than 8,700 feet above sea level—was causing problems for the players:

Leverock unexpectedly put the visiting side ahead when he headed in a corner from Osagi Bascome.

Many expected Bermuda’s advantage wouldn’t hold for long. However, the goal allowed the Gombey Warriors to drop even further back to defend and surround their own 18-yard box.
Goalkeeper Dale Eve was doing a good job as well when Mexico tested him. Eve saved Cordova’s free kick in the 13th minute before Bermuda conceded a corner.

Eve was helpless to stop Cordova’s second effort in the 27th minute, though. The Club America midfielder faked with his right and moved the ball onto his left before unleashing a precise shot into the top right corner.

Getting the equalizer didn’t provide a sustained lift to Mexico, which struggled to make the most of all its time on the ball to end the first half and then into the second.
For a long stretch of the final 45 minutes, a cat was responsible for the most action when it wandered onto the pitch.

The fans won’t remember Mexico’s performance too fondly, but the team closes out 2019 having won 16 of its 17 matches this year. That’s a vast improvement over 2018, when Mexico ended the year with seven losses in eight fixtures—a run that included a round-of-16 exit in the World Cup.

Tuesday’s two goalscorers shouldn’t go unnoticed, either. Both Antuna and Cordova are 22 and made their international debuts under coach Tata Martino. Martino is doing a good job of laying the groundwork for the 2021 Gold Cup and the qualifying campaign for the 2022 World Cu