GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Alexis Vega snapped a 19-match scoreless streak in international play with a goal in the 49th minute and defending champion Mexico beat Saudi Arabia 2-0 in the CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinals on Saturday night.
Mexico will face Honduras in the semifinals on Wednesday in Santa Clara, California. Honduras beat Panama in a penalty shootout earlier Saturday after the teams played to a 1-1 draw in regulation.
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Mexico midfielder Roberto Alvarado (25) dribbles the ball past Saudi Arabia midfielder Ali Alhassan (6) during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
Saudi Arabia forward Feras Albrikan (9) traps the ball while pressured by Mexico defender Julián Araujo (22) and Mexico midfielder Edson Álvarez (4) during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
Mexico forward Marcel Ruiz (14) and Saudi Arabia defender Hassan Mahbub (14) collide during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
Mexico defender Julián Araujo (22) and Saudi Arabia forward Abdulrahman Alobud (24) battle for the ball during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
Saudi Arabia defender Ali Majrashi (26) fouls Mexico forward Alexis Vega (10) during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
The 27-year-old Vega scored after finding some room to work following a nice pass from Raúl Jimenez. His first shot bounced off goalkeeper Nawaf Alaquidi, but the forward quickly corralled the rebound and sent it through Alaquidi's legs and into the net.
Vega was initially ruled offside but after review, the goal was allowed and Mexico had a 1-0 lead.
Mexico coach Javier Aguirre was pleased with how his team played, particularly after halftime. He said they're heading in the right direction going into the semifinals.
“It was an A-plus,” the coach said.
Vega's goal snapped a scoreless streak in international play that dates back to 2022. It also ended a dry spell for Mexico, which scored for the first time in 166 minutes of play.
El Tri's final match in group play ended with a scoreless draw against Costa Rica.
Mexico pushed ahead 2-0 in the 81st minute on an own-goal by Saudi Arabia's Abdullah Madu. Mexico's Mateo Chavez sent a crossing pass to Roberto Alvarado, who never made contact with the ball. Instead, it caromed off a defending Madu and into the net.
Saudi Arabia stifled Mexico's offense for much of a scoreless, physical first half. The tension escalated just before the halftime break — Saudi Arabia's Ali Majrashi and Mexico's Jesús Gallardo were both being shown yellow cards after the two exchanged shoves.
Gallardo will be suspended for the semifinal match because of yellow card accumulation.
Midfielder Luis Chávez missed the game after tearing his right ACL in training.
Midfielder Gilberto Mora made his international debut and played until the 73rd minute, becoming Mexico's youngest player at 16 years, 8 months, 14 days.
“He doesn't have any limits right now,” Aguirre said. “He has room to grow ... and is eager to learn."
Mexico is in the knockout stage of the Gold Cup for the 18th consecutive time. Saudi Arabia is playing in its first Gold Cup as an invited guest and advanced to the quarterfinals after beating Haiti, losing to the U.S. and playing to a draw with Trinidad and Tobago.
El Tri is two wins from a record 10th Gold Cup championship. The United States has won seven times while Canada won once.
Saudi Arabia has never beaten Mexico in international play, with six losses and a draw.
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Mexico midfielder Roberto Alvarado (25) dribbles the ball past Saudi Arabia midfielder Ali Alhassan (6) during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
Saudi Arabia forward Feras Albrikan (9) traps the ball while pressured by Mexico defender Julián Araujo (22) and Mexico midfielder Edson Álvarez (4) during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
Mexico forward Marcel Ruiz (14) and Saudi Arabia defender Hassan Mahbub (14) collide during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
Mexico defender Julián Araujo (22) and Saudi Arabia forward Abdulrahman Alobud (24) battle for the ball during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
Saudi Arabia defender Ali Majrashi (26) fouls Mexico forward Alexis Vega (10) during a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal soccer match, Saturday, June 28, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Samantha Chow)
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal agents carrying out immigration arrests in Minnesota's Twin Cities region already shaken by the fatal shooting of a woman rammed the door of one home Sunday and pushed their way inside, part of what the Department of Homeland Security has called its largest enforcement operation ever.
In a dramatic scene similar to those playing out across Minneapolis, agents captured a man in the home just minutes after pepper spraying protesters outside who had confronted the heavily armed federal agents. Along the residential street, protesters honked car horns, banged on drums and blew whistles in attempts to disrupt the operation.
Video of the clash taken by The Associated Press showed some agents pushing back protesters while a distraught woman later emerged from the house with a document that federal agents presented to arrest the man. Signed by an immigration officer, the document — unlike a warrant signed by a judge — does not authorize forced entry into a private residence. A warrant signed by an immigration officer only authorizes arrest in a public area.
Immigrant advocacy groups have conducted extensive “know-your-rights” campaigns urging people not to open their doors unless agents have a court order signed by a judge.
But within minutes of ramming the door in a neighborhood filled with single-family homes, the handcuffed man was led away.
More than 2,000 immigration arrests have been made in Minnesota since the enforcement operation began at the beginning of December, said Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told Fox News on Sunday that the administration would send additional federal agents to Minnesota to protect immigration officers and continue enforcement.
The Twin Cities — the latest target in President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement campaign — is bracing for what is next after 37-year-old Renee Good was shot and killed by an immigration officer on Wednesday.
“We’re seeing a lot of immigration enforcement across Minneapolis and across the state, federal agents just swarming around our neighborhoods,” said Jason Chavez, a Minneapolis city councilmember. “They’ve definitely been out here.”
Chavez, the son of Mexican immigrants who represents an area with a growing immigrant population, said he is closely monitoring information from chat groups about where residents are seeing agents operating.
People holding whistles positioned themselves in freezing temperatures on street corners Sunday in the neighborhood where Good was killed, watching for any signs of federal agents.
More than 20,000 people have taken part in a variety of trainings to become “observers” of enforcement activities in Minnesota since the 2024 election, said Luis Argueta, a spokesperson for Unidos MN, a local human rights organization .
“It’s a role that people choose to take on voluntarily, because they choose to look out for their neighbors,” Argueta said.
The protests have been largely peaceful, but residents remained anxious. On Monday, Minneapolis public schools will start offering remote learning for the next month in response to concerns that children might feel unsafe venturing out while tensions remain high.
Many schools closed last week after Good’s shooting and the upheaval that followed.
While the enforcement activity continues, two of the state’s leading Democrats said that the investigation into Good's shooting death should not be overseen solely by the federal government.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and U.S. Sen. Tina Smith said in separate interviews Sunday that state authorities should be included in the investigation because the federal government has already made clear what it believes happened.
“How can we trust the federal government to do an objective, unbiased investigation, without prejudice, when at the beginning of that investigation they have already announced exactly what they saw — what they think happened," Smith said on ABC’s "This Week."
The Trump administration has defended the officer who shot Good in her car, saying he was protecting himself and fellow agents and that Good had “weaponized” her vehicle.
Todd Lyons, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, defended the officer on Fox News Channel’s “The Sunday Briefing.”
"That law enforcement officer had milliseconds, if not short time to make a decision to save his life and his other fellow agents,” he said.
Lyons also said the administration’s enforcement operations in Minnesota wouldn't be needed “if local jurisdictions worked with us to turn over these criminally illegal aliens once they are already considered a public safety threat by the locals.”
The killing of Good by an ICE officer and the shooting of two people by federal agents in Portland, Oregon, led to dozens of protests in cities across the country over the weekend, including New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and Oakland, California.
Contributing were Associated Press journalists Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis; Thomas Strong in Washington; Bill Barrow in Atlanta; Christopher Weber in Los Angeles; and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio.
A woman gets into an altercation with a federal immigration officer as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A federal immigration officer deploys pepper spray as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A family member, center, reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Bystanders are treated after being pepper sprayed as federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
A family member reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Federal agents look on after detaining a person during a patrol in Minneapolis, Minn., Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)
Bystanders react after a man was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)
People stand near a memorial at the site where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)
A man looks out of a car window after being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Border Patrol agents detain a man, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
People shout toward Border Patrol agents making an arrest, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)
Demonstrators protest outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey holds a news conference on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)
Protesters react as they visit a makeshift memorial during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)
