Germany’s Julian Nagelsmann and Mexico’s Jaime Lozano have a lot in common

The Germany and Mexico managers will meet for the first time in Philadelphia, and both of them will share the same mission: put their national teams back on the right track and give credibility to their management before next year’s huge international tournaments.

Both El Tri and Die Mannschaft come into the game off the back of terrible World Cup campaigns, in which neither or the two sides made it out of the group stages. The German manager at the time, Hansi Flick, was given slightly more time than his Mexican counterpart, Tata Martino, who left just after he saw his side knocked out at the first hurdle.

Both sides have suffered low points in the last year

In his place came Diego Cocca, the Atlas champion, but his waltz through the corridors of the Mexico Federation HQ was brief, and a string of poor results and general bad vibes surrounding the side soon saw him pack up the things on his desk and leave. Jaime Lozano was selected as the man to lead the charge in the Gold Cup, which Mexico won.

One day before the final against Panama, Flick’s Germany lost to Poland in a trio of consecutive defeats that would ultimately be fatal for the manager. The last one, a 4-1 thrashing to Japan, was the final straw for the ex-Bayern Munich manager.

‘They confronted me because of my age, I think it’s the same as in Mexico’

After months of speculation, and with the pressure of the country hosting the Euro 2024 tournament, Julian Nagelsmann was named as the successor and the man to lift the spirits of a team who had sunk to new lows. The appointment was not without its detractors: at 36-years-old, the decision to sign Nagelsmann was criticised by some parts of the German media. In the pre-match press conference ahead of the Mexico game, Nagelsmann said that “they confronted me because of my age, I think it’s the same as in Mexico. I don’t think age is a talking point, the most important thing is your idea, convincing the players and making them develop it.”

Jaime Lozano, who is 45-years-old, has only managed two clubs, both in Liga MX, in his career: Querétaro and Necaxa. His opposite number also has a small career in the Bundesliga, with one exception as a giant: Hoffenheim, Leipzig and Bayern Munich. Both managers are playing for prestige and the confidence of their ideas for the projects that they are overseeing with an eye on the upcoming international tournaments.

Mexico take on Germany at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday 17 October 2023, with kick-off at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT.