Manfred Ugalde of Costa Rica and Guatemala's Olger Escobar are among the Gold Cup stars set to shine in Concacaf qualifying in September.
Ten of the 16 Gold Cup teams will take part in the third round of Concacaf qualifying
Oscar Santis and Olger Escobar helped Guatemala reach their first semi-final since 1996
Panama’s Ismael Diaz, Costa Rica’s Manfred Ugalde and Denil Maldonado of Honduras also starred
If the 2025 Gold Cup is any indication, the third round of Concacaf qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 26™ this coming September, October and November will be one to remember.
Ten of the 16 teams who were involved in the Gold Cup will take part in the decisive round of qualifiers, in which the winners of the three four-team groups will punch their World Cup ticket, while the two best second-place sides will progress to the Play-Off Tournament.
FIFA takes a look at five players who delivered top performances during the Gold Cup and will play crucial roles for their teams beginning in September.
Even before the tournament started, Diaz had a penchant for scoring Gold Cup goals. He took it to another level though in 2025 by tallying six goals and easily walking away with top goalscoring honours, the highlight being a hat-trick against Jamaica in the group stage. The 28-year-old winger now has 11 Gold Cup goals in his career, tying him with legendary Panamanian striker Blas Perez.
Panama head coach Thomas Christiansen would like nothing more than to see these kinds of returns come September against Suriname and Guatemala. Diaz has just one goal thus far in this cycle, in the 2-0 win over Nicaragua in June, but a continuation of his excellent form from the Gold Cup would get the Canaleros off to an ideal start.
Born to Guatemalan parents and raised in Lynn, Massachusetts, just to the north of Boston in the USA, Escobar played a big role in helping Guatemala make history. Los Chapines advanced to the semi-finals of the Gold Cup for the first time since 1996, with Escobar featuring in all five matches. The 18-year-old midfielder scored a pair of goals, including the lone Guatemala score in their narrow 2-1 loss to USA in the semi-finals, and claimed the tournament’s Young Player Award.
Escobar is versatile enough to play on the wing and recently made his Major League Soccer (MLS) debut with CF Montreal. Even at such a young age, he has already amassed 14 caps under head coach Luis Fernando Tena and no doubt will figure into the Mexican coach’s plans for Guatemala’s third round campaign against Panama, El Salvador and Suriname.
While Honduras’ wait for a Gold Cup semi-final was not as long as Guatemala’s, 2013 compared to 1996, it still felt like an eternity for fans of Los Catrachos, who enjoyed three straight successive semi-final finishes from 2009-13. Maldonado played his part in restoring their faith. After an opening 6-0 defeat to Canada, Honduras righted their defensive ship thanks to the 27-year-old centre-back, shepherding a back-line that conceded just three goals in the following four matches.
Honduras begin their third round against Haiti and Nicaragua and a clean sheet in each will be the objective for head coach Reinaldo Rueda in a group that includes World Cup stalwarts Costa Rica. Maldonado’s hulking presence in the back will likely ensure that La H will be in the mix until the final matchday.
Guatemala’s history-making finish earns them a second player on the list in the form of Santis, who is arguably in the best form of his life. The 26-year-old forward had the only goal in their impressive 1-0 win over Jamaica to start the tournament and later would collect an assist. Santis also did the dirty work in defence with seven tackles and one interception, on his way to a spot in the tournament’s Best XI.
His performance in the Gold Cup came on the heels of a night to remember in Guatemala’s 4-2 win over Dominican Republic in the June qualifying window, which cemented their place in the third round. With his team staring at a second half deficit. Santis scored three goals and added an assist to lead the Central Americans to a 4-2 victory. Santis will be a crucial part of Guatemala’s hopes when they open the next phase with titanic clashes against El Salvador and Panama.
The 23-year-old has all but consolidated his place up front for head coach Miguel Herrera, evidenced by his excellent return rate of 10 goals in just 25 matches. He is capable of playing as a No9, but can drop a little further back and operate as a No10. He has eight assists with the national team, including one during the Gold Cup. With four goals in Costa Rica’s last two qualifying windows, on top of a sterling display in the Gold Cup, fans can expect Ugalde tofigure prominently in their third-round openers against Nicaragua and Haiti.
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