Defender César Montes scored twice in a six-minute span in the second half and defending champion Mexico struggled early but managed to get past Suriname 2-0 on Wednesday night to secure a spot in the knockout round of the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Montes opened the scoring on a header off a corner kick in the 57 and added another goal in the 63rd minute for the Mexicans, who defeated the Dominican Republic 3-2 in the opening match of the tournament.

With three goals in the tournament, the 28-year-old defender, who plays for Lokomotiv of Moscow, currently shares the scoring lead with Costa Rican Manfred Ugalde.

"I am excited about the goals, but the priority is keeping a clean sheet. I obviously didn't imagine it; that's what strikers are for, but as long as I can help the team in that way, I'll do it," Montes said.

With the win, Mexico leads Group A with six points and will play Costa Rica next Sunday in Las Vegas aiming to secure the first place ahead of the second round.

Suriname has lost all four official matches played against Mexico and will try to close the tournament with a win when they play the debutant Dominican Republic next Sunday.