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Soccer in Mexico fears going back in time by falling in the group stage

2022-11-30T11:11:17.405Z


Tata Martino's El Tri needs to thrash a surprising Saudi Arabia to aspire to the round of 16. The last time he was eliminated was in Argentina 1978


The players of Mexico during a training session in Qatar. Moises Castillo (AP)

The bet of a project is decided in a match.

The Mexican Football Federation was renewed in 2018 to try to change the course.

The first change of the presidents of the Mexican clubs, where América de Televisa rules, was to appoint a former employee of the television station: Yon de Luisa.

The second was to find a replacement for then coach Juan Carlos Osorio.

Months later they signed Gerardo Martino.

And to show a change of era, they also modified the shield of the team by going from the stone of the Aztec sun to a sharp eagle.

The goal in the World Cup, however, was the same as in 1994: to qualify for the round of 16.

The first World Cup in El Tri in the time of Yon de Luisa played its qualification in the match against Saudi Arabia, which was apparently the weakest rival in the group.

The Saudis caught an Argentina in their trap that, no matter how many shots they tried, could not beat the Asian defense.

That 1-2 against Albiceleste complicated group C for Poles and Mexicans as well.

The 0-0 draw against Poland showed an aggressive face of the Mexicans and with a guardian in the goal.

The 2-0 defeat against Argentina put Martino's defensive approach under criticism, which he endured for an hour and then collapsed with changes that suffocated his game.

The desire of the Mexican team depends on a victory and not only by the minimum, but on waiting for what Lewandowski's men do against Messi.

They need to win 4-0 to get out of the other game.

If they draw or lose against the Saudis, out.

The rest of the combinations are left to chance.

In 1978, during the World Cup organized during the Argentine dictatorship, Mexico was eliminated in the group stage.

That time the Mexicans left crestfallen with a 3-1 against Tunisia, a 6-0 against West Germany and a 3-1 against the Poles.

It did not matter that in that team there were references such as Alfredo Tena, Leonardo Cuéllar or Hugo Sánchez.

That was the last World Cup in which Mexico was left out of groups.

No, it's not the first time.

In the first major edition, in 1930, it was eliminated.

It also happened in 1950, 1954, 1958, 1962 and 1966. The first time that the Mexicans surpassed the groups was in 1970.

There is high tension between the Mexican federations because in four years they will be in charge of organizing, along with the US and Canada, the World Cup.

De Luisa was one of the architects to achieve the candidacy and manage everything before FIFA.

A setback in Qatar would complicate confidence among Mexican executives;

qualifying for the round of 16 would basically meet the expectations of the federation.

To win a tentative round of 16 game would be to find oil.

The coach of Mexico, Tata Martino, talks with Hirving Lozano in a training session in Jor, Qatar, Moises Castillo (AP)

The Mexicans also put their streak of seven World Cups and seven group rounds to the test against the Arabs.

There is also an adverse fact: if the Tri does not get a goal in the entire first phase, we would have to go back to Sweden 1958 when they only scored one goal against Wales or England 1966 when they scratched a 1-1 draw against France.

To avoid a tragedy, the Tri of 2022 needs to find notes on the feet of Hirving Lozano, Alexis Vega or whoever is finer.

The Renard Factor

The Arabs have an inveterate coach and motivator.

The French Hervè Renard, with three years in charge, has managed to change the mentality of an Asian team that knocked down, as best they could, Argentina: 14 shots on goal were from the South Americans and only three from Saudi Arabia.

The effectiveness was on his side.

Things changed against Poland where they kicked 16 times on target against eight of their opponents.

But this time the results did not favor him because they lost 2-0 against Lewandowski.

“I have a voice that transmits.

I look people in the eye and speak clearly," Renard said in an interview with FIFA.

And wow, he has managed to convey to his people with his harangues, with the Argentines: “Come on, guys, this is a World Cup!

They are very relaxed!”

The country hasn't made it past the round of 16 since 1994. "If these players want the fans to remember them, they have to make history," said the Frenchman.

Motivational messages, however, have not been Martino's forte with Mexico.

Everything is based on strategy and the harangues correspond to his captains Memo Ochoa and Andrés Guardado.

“There is no need for excuses, we clearly have a game that we need to win.

The only thing we need is to give the Mexican people answers, ”he released this Tuesday.

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Source: elparis

All sports articles on 2022-11-30

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