Raúl Jiménez, Alexis Vega and Héctor Herrera back in Mexico squad

Jaime Lozano has named his first Mexico squad since being appointed the permanent head coach of El Tri. The former Necaxa coach won the Gold Cup during an interim spell in the summer and has looked to ring the changes ahead of the upcoming fixtures.

Fulham forward Raúl Jiménez, Alexis Vega of Chivas, Kevin Álvarez of América and Héctor Herrera of the Houston Dynamo are among the ten new faces in Lozano’s squad. Mexico face Australia (9 September) and Uzbekistan (12 September) in the upcoming international break.

Why has Jaime Lozano changed the squad?

For veterans Héctor Herrera and Raúl Jiménez, these fixtures will provide an opportunity to show that they still warrant a place in the international set up. Lozano will hope that their experience will help to bring through a talented crop of young players.

Raúl Jiménez, in particular, has a real challenge ahead of him. He is still looking to get back to his best form after suffering a fractured skull in a Premier League match in November 2020.

While Kevin Álvarez played for Mexico in the 2022 World Cup but was left out of the squad over the summer after some underwhelming performances. The former Pachuca right back moved to América earlier this year and has shown better form.

The likes of Jesús Orozco, Jesús Angulo and Gilberto Sepúlveda all return to the squad under Lozano.

Lozano has also looked to the future with Jordi Cortizo of Monterrey and Pumas forward César “Chino” Huerta, who both receive their first call up to the senior national team.

Lozano brings in ten new players

When asked if he wanted to take over the national team on a permanent basis, Lozano replied: “If it’s my turn, it’s a dream. It’s a dream.”

That dream has now come true and he is wasting little time in putting his own imprint on the team. Not content to stick with the players who lifted the Gold Cup earlier this summer, Lozano has brought ten new players into the fold.