Gold Cup reaches quarterfinals this weekend

The last two Gold Cup soccer tournaments both ended the same way: with the U.S. playing Mexico. And very few people figured this month’s revival would be any different.

Significant among the doubters, though, was U.S. midfielder Landon Donovan, a three-time Gold Cup champion who warned that the rest of the region was catching up to the CONCACAF’s two titans.

Well, he was half right.

Because while Mexico has remained dominant, outscoring its three opponents 14-1 in romping through group play, the U.S. lost to Panama and needed a 1-0 win over Guadeloupe to reach the second round.

Mexico hopes to runs its Gold Cup unbeaten streak to 10 matches Saturday when it faces Guatemala in its quarterfinal at the New Meadowlands in New Jersey. Costa Rica plays Honduras in the opening match.

The U.S. faces Jamaica on Sunday afternoon in Washington’s RFK Stadium in its quarterfinal. That match will be followed by the final quarterfinal between Panama and El Salvador.

Now that it has survived the first round, things figure to get more challenging for the offensively challenged U.S., which faces a team led by Donovan’s Galaxy teammate Donovan Ricketts, the only keeper who hasn’t given up a score in the tournament.

So for now any talk about a rematch with Mexico will have to wait.

“Our goal has always been to get to the final,” embattled U.S. Coach Bob Bradley said. “We understand from experience what it means in group play. You have to deal with each game and find a way to advance.

“Nonetheless, I think there are things there that bring the group together, and now we get ready for the knockout phase and approach it one game at a time.”

And there are also things that drive the group apart. Weddings, for example.

Donovan, who complained last week about a lack of training time with his new teammates, left the squad shortly after the Guadeloupe game to attend his sister’s wedding in California. And midfielder Clint Dempsey left the team to attend a sister’s wedding in Texas.

Both are expected to rejoin the team Saturday, but their absence from training may make it difficult to build on the chemistry the U.S. appeared to find against Guadeloupe, when it got off 21 shots.

“We made a lot of good plays, a lot of good passes to get to the final spot,” Donovan said. “Our finishing let us down. Sometimes those go in and sometimes those do not, and we have to be better as a group in front of the goal.

“We should have won 3 or 4-0.”

Mexico, meanwhile, hasn’t had a full squad since its tournament opener. After that match defender Ricardo Osorio was sent home with an illness. And four days later five Mexican players — including starting keeper Guillermo Ochoa and defender Francisco Rodriguez, a two-time World Cup veteran — were suspended after testing positive for clenbuterol, a banned anabolic agent. And on Friday, FIFA said Mexico could replace the banned players.

It doesn’t appear to have made much of a difference, since Mexico’s 14 goals are double what any other team has scored. And matinee-idol striker Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez, with five goals, has outscored the entire U.S. team.

“We know their offense is the best,” Guatemala goalkeeper Ricardo Jerez said. “Chicharito has been great. That is something you have to respect. We know they’ve scored 14 goals in three games.

“But this is a different game. We know who they are. If we are positioned well, there is no chance for them to harm us.”

kevin.baxter@latimes.com The Associated Press contributed to this report.