World Cup Qualifying - How to watch Mexico vs Jamaica on September 2, 2021

September 2, 2021 By Oscar Rojas

Topics: World Cup Qualifying, CONCACAF, Mexico, Jamaica, TV Schedules, TV Listings

El Tri and the Reggae Boyz kick off their run for a ticket to play the FIFA World Cup with quite a few issues to consider prior to tonight's kickoff.

The Final Round of the CONCACAF World Cup Qualifiers will get underway this Thursday, and what better way to do so than watching Mexico against Jamaica, two teams that truly have what it takes to win the tournament and enter next year's competition on a high note.

Mexico will make it to this game after losing the CONCACAF Gold Cup title against the USMNT in their last competitive game. Prior to that, Gerardo Martino's men had gone eight games without a loss, with six wins and two draws during that period.

For this game, coach Martino had to adapt his squad to the restrictions imposed by some European leagues, which saw Mexico missing out on the chance to add Raúl Jiménez to their squad. Other players who were unable to join the team are Johan Vásquez (Genoa) and Hirving Lozano (Napoli), both out due to injury. To substitute them, coach Martino will have striker Rogelio Funes Mori, winger Alexis Vega, and midfielder Sebastián Córdova, two of Mexico's bronze-medal winners in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

On the other hand, Jamaica returns to the Final Round of the CONCACAF World Cup Qualifiers after missing out on the tournament that handed three tickets for the 2018 competition. The Reggae Boyz will enter the tournament with two 1-0 losses in a row in the CONCACAF Gold Cup, with the last one of those getting them eliminated in the Quarter-finals by none other than the USMNT. All in all, Jamaica have only been able to win two of their games this year, adding four losses and one draw to their record in 2021.

For this game, coach Theodore Whitmore had to re-shape his squad. The absences of eleven footballers currently playing in the Premier League will diminish Jamaica's chances of success, especially since players such as Michail Antonio, Ravel Morrison, Bobby DeCordova-Reid and Leon Bailey will not be available for this game. With that in mind, the Reggae Boyz's boss will have to work with players such as Shamar Nicholson, Devon Williams or Kemar Lawrence, who have proven their worth for the black and yellow team previously.

This will be the 24th game between Mexico and Jamaica. El Tri has made the most out of their meetings against the Reggae Boyz with 17 wins, three draws, and only three losses. The Jamaican side's last win against Mexico came in 2017, during the CONCACAF Gold Cup semis of that year. Mexico have never lost a World Cup Qualifier against Jamaica at home, and they will try to keep that streak going despite playing at an empty stadium following a ban from FIFA due to a homophobic slur used by El Tri fans in the Olympic Games' Qualifying matches back in March.