Arlington, Texas, Jun 6 : Manchester United forward Javier Hernandez scored a second-half hat trick to lead Mexico to a 5-0 rout of El Salvador on Sunday in the opening match for both teams in the CONCACAF Gold Cup.Sunday's other game also had a 5-0 scoreline, with Costa Rica thumping Cuba.
Mexico was already 2-0 up when Hernandez scored his first goal in the 60th minute with a long-range bouncing header of an Efrain Juarez corner.He added his second seven minutes later, scoring from 10 yards, and completed his hat trick with a penalty in stoppage time."He was fortunate to score as a result of good team play," Mexico coach Jose Manuel De La Torre said. "He did what forwards are supposed to do."
Hernandez's final goal came after Marvin Gonzalez was red carded for a reckless foul on 'Chicharito', drawing boos from the majority of the 80,000 fans who were supporting Mexico.
"It's unbelievable the support we have from the Mexicans we have that live here. You can see it with your own eyes," Hernandez said, "80,000 people and most of them in green shirts."
Juarez scored the game's first goal after he rebounded his own missed shot, which was blocked by El Salvador goalkeeper Miguel Montes. Aldo De Nigris made it 2-0 in the 57th minute just a minute after coming on as a substitute.
"It was difficult to change in 5 minutes after a positive 55 minutes," El Salvador coach Ruben Israel said. "If you look at the game, luck was not on our side."
Meanwhile, Marco Urena scored twice in Costa Rica's big win.Christian Bolanos set up Urena's first goal, in the seventh minute, with a cross from the left and also played a part in Alvaro Saborio's 41st-minute goal that earned Costa Rica a 2-0 halftime lead.
Urena made it 3-0 in the first minute of the second half when he beat Cuba goalkeeper Odelin Molina one-on-one before firing in from close range.
Heiner Mora scored less than a minute later to put the result beyond doubt.Joe Campbell, who replaced Urena in the 56th minute, volleyed home the fifth goal in the 71st minute.
"At the start of the game the passing was a bit imprecise," Costa Rica coach Ricardo La Volpe said. "I spoke to them about it at halftime and I thought they came out better."We're starting a new tournament, getting to know each other on the field."AP
