When Mexican manager Luis Fernando Tena arrived in Guatemala, one goal was clear: get the largest country in Central America to its first ever FIFA World Cup. That goal is not yet achieved, but it’s nice to reach some important milestones along the way.
A penalty shootout victory over Canada in the Gold Cup quarterfinals Sunday booked Los Chapines‘ place in the semifinals for the first time since 1996, and that’s a pretty massive milestone — one that felt pretty nice for all involved. So nice, in fact, that Tena was moved to tears as he celebrated the win with his players and staff.
“It’s impossible not to get emotional with the support the fans give us,” he said after the match. “It’s impossible not to get emotional hearing them sing the national anthem and impossible not to get emotional seeing how the players put effort in.
“We ended up exhausted from emotions and stress, but thankfully it was the joy of triumph, that feeling of victory that makes you feel like all this is worth it.”
Seeing the warm relationship Tena now has with the Guatemalan fans, who chanted his name as he stepped onto the field for their first Gold Cup match in Los Angeles and have continued to give him ovations, it’s easy to forget that convincing Tena to come to Guatemala was a coup.
Now 67, the manager brings with him a huge level of experience, having started his coaching career with Cruz Azul in the mid-1990s. He led that Mexican grande to a title and notably won the gold medal as Mexico‘s U23 manager at the 2012 Olympics.
Guatemala was still wrestling with the ramifications of a FIFA suspension lifted in 2018 but one that echoed even longer. Having been under suspension during the Concacaf Nations League entry deadline, Guatemala started the first-ever edition of the competition in League C. They lost in Gold Cup qualification in 2021, only to get a lifeline and participate in the tournament as a last-second entry when Curacao had to pull out because of a number of Covid cases. Tena’s countryman Rafael Loredo led a youthful group into the competition, as Guatemala secured a point in three group matches with a draw against Trinidad and Tobago.
Later in 2021, Tena was announced as the new manager. He knew he’d need that young base to continue developing. He also would need new blood.
The Guatemalan league has two historic big teams in Guatemala City and a handful of strong sides outside the capital like Xelaju based in Quetzaltenango and the eponymous Antigua. Yet, its teams are producing far too few players who have the quality to draw the attention of clubs abroad with their superior level of coaching, competition and facilities.
Already producing Facebook content and YouTube videos about Guatemalan soccer in English and Spanish, Juan Rodas had wondered why more Guatemalan-Americans like himself weren’t represented on the Guatemala national team. He started to reach out to players on social media and eventually tips on eligible players started pouring in from agents, family members and the players themselves. While the federation doesn’t employ Rodas, he has gone as far as helping interested recruits get a passport, contacting consulates and managing the paperwork to get players eligible for Guatemala.
Three players in the starting lineup that beat Canada on Sunday — Rubio Rubín, Olger Escobar and Aaron Herrera — were born in the United States. At least three others on the Gold Cup squad also were born in the U.S. but represent the Bicolor of their parents or grandparents. Rodas didn’t discover all of the U.S.-born players but has been able to put dozens of them on the federation’s radar. His recruits range from senior men’s national team regulars to prospects helping Guatemala’s male and female teams at the youth levels.
Rodas doesn’t want to take away from the work being done in Guatemala, but even top Guatemalan players have struggled to stick when leaving the country. Winger Óscar Santis, who scored the winner in Guatemala’s tournament opener against Jamaica and assisted Rubín against Canada, joined Carlos Ruiz as Guatemalans to have played in European competition earning UEFA Conference League minutes at Dinamo Tbilisi. He’s back in Guatemala on loan. Center back José Pinto, the team’s captain, spent six months in Paraguay between spells with Comunicaciones. Largely, however, the team is domestic based or born abroad.
“I’ve always said that Guatemalans born in Guatemala have talent. We saw Santis score a hat trick [in World Cup qualification earlier this month], and I feel like foreign-born players that come from outside of Guatemala definitely make a difference,” Rodas said in an interview this summer. “The players get along well, they mesh well and you can even see it on the field.”
There was no difference between Guatemala-born and foreign-born players as Los Chapines lined up for a penalty shootout, arm in arm as the kickers made the long walk forward. The players also tried to show their support for their goalkeeper, Kenderson Navarro.
The 23-year-old was making just his fourth international appearance, having gotten a cameo as a teenager in the 2021 Gold Cup. It was a frustrating season for Navarro at his club Municipal. He played well, helping his club to the final, but conceded a stoppage-time header that allowed Antigua to win the title.
He certainly didn’t think his country’s hopes of reaching the Gold Cup semifinals would be in his hands, but Guatemala’s reliable No. 1 Nicholas Hagen suffered a muscle injury in the final group match against Guadeloupe and has been ruled out for the tournament.
Yet with veteran Canada forward Cyle Larin on the spot, Navarro dove to his right and stopped the shot. With his kickers largely taking care of their job, a Canada shot onto the crossbar meant Navarro had just backstopped Guatemala to its first Gold Cup semifinal in nearly three decades.
The tournament looked much different then, with just nine entrants playing at three host sites in one state. Now, Guatemala has navigated a 16-team tournament with 13 host cities. It has played four matches but will play at least one more.
The goal is still the World Cup, but with a legendary manager, a superfan scout and a goalkeeper who didn’t think he’d play at this tournament, Guatemala is into the semifinals of the Gold Cup with hope still alive that it could lift the trophy for the first time. How can you not feel the emotion?
