Canada proves it's the 2025 Gold Cup favorite, not the USMNT or El Tri | OneFootball

With all due respect to the U.S. men's national team and their longtime rivals Mexico, Canada should be the Concacaf Gold Cup favorites. Tuesday night's 6-0 demolition of Honduras proved it.

Seemingly undeterred by the absences of Alphonso Davies (torn ACL) and Stephen Estaquio (Club World Cup), Canada ran all over the poor Catrachos from the opening whistle of their Group B opener on Tuesday night.

Tajon Buchanan scored twice and five others found the net as Jesse Marsch's side put up the biggest rout of the tournament so far. And they did it with star man Jonathan David kept off the scoresheet, content to play decoy at some times and provider at others against a Honduran side that simply couldn't cope with the range of options.

But not only was Canada darn near inevitable in their opening Gold Cup salvo, they were also playing against -- on paper at least -- one of the tougher opening opponents. Honduras is the highest-ranked Group B foe for Canada in the FIFA World Rankings at No. 75 marginally ahead of No. 81 El Salvador and No. 90 Curacao.

By contrast, the USA's 5-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago came against the lowest-ranked of the three Group D teams. The same goes for Mexico's narrower 3-2 win over the Dominican Republic.

Strength in numbers

And Canada's win also came while Marsch felt compelled to leave several players we're used to seeing be regular contributors on the bench. Cyle Larin sat behind Tani Oluwayesi as David's striking partner. Larin entered after halftime along with Kamal Miller and Jacob Shaffelburg. Ismael Kone, Jonathan Osorio and Jayden Nelson went unused.

While Mexico may have more top-tier stars, and the makeshift USA squad is still the tournament host, Canada's roster is deeper and more interchangeable than any in the region. The fact oddsmakers' installed them as the third-favorites behind their two North American rivals probably is more reflective of an uninformed betting public than any realistic assessment of the three squads.

And their depth is especially deadly in a Marsch-style tactical setup that prioritizes pressure over possession. With quick turnarounds between matches, the Canadians' edge in numbers and ability to rotate is only going to grow as the wear from combined matches and general fatigue sets in.

History suggests dominance by Mexico and the USA, who have combined to win 17 of the 18 Gold Cups contested. But this is a different region since Canada's first emergence in the 2022 World Cup qualifying cycle, one ripe for the Canucks to repeat their lone Gold Cup triumph from 25 years ago.

The 2021 team lost narrowly to Mexico in the semifinals, doomed by an Andres Guardado goal deep in second-half stoppage time. The 2023 group was a weakened roster meant to develop depth, depth that is now proving valuable.

With lots of things changing in the world of football, now is Canada's time to truly declare itself as a continental force. Tuesday was a statement of that intent and very real possibility.