Mexico get their mojo back against Ghana
Jaime Lozano’s team settled the game in the second half and boost spirits ahead of their next outing, against Germany.
After two games without a win, Mexico finally had something to cheer after beating Ghana 2-0 at the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina on Saturday night. It may only have been a friendly but the result will do wonders in lifting morale within Jaime Lozano’s team ahead of their next test - Tuesday’s meeting with Germany, in this series of preparatory matches for the 2026 World Cup.
Lozano opens the scoring
The game was closely-fought during the first 45 minutes; Edson Álvarez was the first to go close getting on the end of a loose ball at the edge of the box only for his shot to clip the bar and end up in the stands. Mexico went ahead on 57 minutes, catching the Africans off-guard with a quickly-taken free-kick from Luis Chávez. Hirving Lozano was released down the left and cut inside to fire a low shot past Lawrence Ati-Zigi.
Mexico could have doubled their lead five minutes later - once again, the Ghana defence was split by a Luis Chávez through-ball which left substitute Uriel Antuna free but the Cruz Azul winger, under pressure from Gideon Mensah, sent his effort into the side netting.
Antuna made no mistake on 72 minutes, finishing off a lightning counter with a delicate finish after being put through by César Huerta.
While Ghana didn’t make things easy for Mexico, they didn’t trouble Memo Ochoa either - not one shot on target during the 90 minutes, although they did manage four that went wide. Tuesday’s rivals Germany, who beat the United States in Connecticut on Saturday, will give El Tri a much tougher test when they meet in Philadelphia this week.
As one of the three host nations for the next World Cup, Mexico automatically qualifies for the tournament and therefore has no need to play Concacaf qualifers. To compensate, Jaime Lozano’s team have a series of preparation games lined up to keep them competitive and in the best possible shape in the months leading up to World Cup 2026.
After facing Germany, Mexico has two Concacaf Nations League matches in November - two quarter final ties against a rival yet to be determined. On December 16 they have a friendly against Colombia.
Under Jaime Lozano, Mexico has not lost since the Gold Cup group stage defeat to Qatar at the start of July. Prior to the Ghana game, the team drew both of their previous two friendlies, against Australia and Uzbekistan.