FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida, CMC – Two first-half goals were enough to propel 10-man Martinique to a nervy 2-1 win over El Salvador in their opening Group C game of the CONCACAF Gold Cup here Monday.
Patrick Burner’s 11th-minute strike put the French Caribbean side ahead before Kevin Fortune doubled their lead five minutes later for a 2-0 advantage at the break at the DRV PNK Stadium.
Jairo Henriquez missed a penalty in the 83rd after Martinique’s Jonathan Riviere was sent off in the 48th, and by the time Bryan Tamacas scored his penalty deep in stoppage time in the end, El Salvador had run out of time.
“This is a proud victory. We beat El Salvador. El Salvador is not a small team, they are one of the big teams in CONCACAF, so I’m very proud of us,” said defender Florent Poulolo, who plays professionally in the Czech Republic.
“We are a team that needs to stay humble because the road is still very long. Today we won a game because we did things well, and I hope we can continue this going forward to try to get as many points as possible.”
Poulolo had a hand in the opening goal, intercepting a pass from Alex Roldan and playing through Burner, the 27-year-old putting his finish beyond goalkeeper Tomas Romero.
The Central American sides had barely recovered when Martinique struck again, this time Brighton Labeau coming up with the interception and setting up Fortune for the finish.
The second half was dramatic; Rivierez was dismissed moments after the break, and goalkeeper Yannis Clementia saved Jairo Henriquez’s penalty before Tamacas knocked in his spot kick following a handball with time almost expired at the end.
Panama registered a 2-1 victory over Costa Rica in the other game at the venue to start their campaign positively.
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