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Javier Aguirre has been saying for some time that the key to the Mexican team’s success in the World Cup is that they are a family. This family, it seems, is on a historic journey.
Mateo Chávez and Julián Quiñones scored within a six-minute span early in the second half, and Mexico beat the Czech Republic 3-0 on Wednesday to complete wins in all three of their World Cup group matches for the first time.
Chávez, 22, in his first World Cup, opened the scoring in the 55th minute and Quiñones scored his second goal of the tournament in the 61st minute. Álvaro Fidalgo added a goal in added time.
“It was something very beautiful and I will take it to my grave,” Chavez said of his goal. “I imagined it many times; I dreamed about this.”
Mexico’s previous best performance in the group stage was two wins and a draw, achieved in 1986 and 2002 and both with Javier Aguirre, the first as a midfielder and the second as coach of El Tri. Aguirre returns as coach this year, in his third stage leading the national team.
After topping Group A, Mexico will play again at the Estadio Azteca on Tuesday in a round of 32 match against an opponent to be determined.
“Now comes the knockout phase, statistics and data do not matter. We are achieving things, but what is ahead is what counts,” said Aguirre. “Neither the players nor I stop at what we just did; we are thinking about what’s next.”
Mexico is undefeated in nine World Cup matches in the huge stadium, which was packed with 80,824 fans on Wednesday. El Tri only has two defeats at Azteca, the most recent in the World Cup qualifiers against Honduras on September 6, 2013.
Wednesday’s game included nods to Mexico’s past and future. Gilberto Mora, at 17 years old, became the youngest Mexican player to start in a World Cup. And goalkeeper Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa, 40, entered in the 77th minute, joining Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo as the only players to play in six World Cups.
Mora said “it’s like a dream come true after everything I’ve worked for.”
“Now we have tough rivals ahead of us,” he added. “We are going to continue working to continue on this path. We want to continue advancing because the Mexican team can become champion.”
Mexico’s victory was marred, however, by the return of a homophobic chant by fans that previously led to fines and other sanctions against its soccer federation. The chant, a one-word insult, was heard near the end of the first half when Czech goalkeeper Matej Kovar took a goal kick.
The Czech Republic were eliminated, finishing with one point from three games.
Mexico is undefeated in 11 games since a friendly loss against Panama last November. And Aguirre has made the most of his roster, using 25 of 26 players in the tournament. Chavez was one of five starters Wednesday who didn’t start in the previous win over South Korea.
“Twenty-five of the 26 have played, that is not a small detail, nor is it a small detail that everyone celebrates the goals,” Aguirre said.
Ochoa makes history in his probable farewell
Ochoa, wearing the number 13, played the final 13 minutes of regulation time, plus injury time, in what will likely be his last appearance for Mexico. He will turn 41 on July 13 and plans to retire from international competition after the World Cup.
“Life, football, had this farewell in store for me, to top it all off. For my part, I left it all there, I gave it my all,” said Ochoa. “I leave with nothing because I have poured everything into my teams and the national team.”
He was a substitute in the 2006 and 2010 tournaments and was a starter for Mexico in 2014, 2018 and 2022.
“I felt like Memo had to play (but) for how long? I never knew until I said, ‘This is the time,'” Aguirre said. “These are the coach’s decisions, but it was a night for Mexico to honor their legend, Memo.”
Raúl Rangel is the starter this year, replacing the injured Luis Ángel Malagón, who helped Mexico win the CONCACAF Nations League and the Gold Cup last year. Malagón’s injury opened the door for Ochoa’s return.
Ochoa became the oldest Mexican to play in a World Cup. The previous record was held by Cuauhtémoc Blanco, who was 37 years old when he played in South Africa in 2014.
After the game, the veteran goalkeeper kissed the post before kneeling and being hugged by the rest of the squad.
“Regarding Memo’s appearance, we don’t know if he is going to say goodbye or not, but it was a nice tribute for his six World Cups,” Aguirre added. “He is a legend, he is Mexican.” ___
Associated Press information.
