Mexico’s major World Cup problem
After watching his team play out a scoreless friendly draw with Portugal this weekend, Mexico boss Javier Aguirre bemoaned El Tri’s luck.
This Saturday, in the reopening of the Estadio Azteca, Mexico played to a scoreless draw against Portugal - a match for which head coach Javier Aguirre was forced to rebuild his roster due to a long list of injured players.
After the game, one that required several debuts because of El Tri’s injury crisis, Aguirre addressed the media and clarified the status of the players currently unavailable for physical reasons.
“A major blow”
Ahead of the March international break - the final FIFA window before the World Cup - Mexico suffered a number of setbacks in a matter of days. Most significantly, goalkeeper Luis Ángel Malagón and midfielder Marcel Ruiz were both ruled out of this summer’s tournament after suffering serious injuries in early March.
“The injuries have been a major blow,” Aguirre said after Saturday’s game in Mexico City. “You’re watching TV and suddenly Marcel’s knee goes, then Luis Ángel’s tendon goes.
“And the news keeps coming. Mateo [Chávez] is out, ‘Chino’ [César Huerta] needs another surgery, I’ve talked with [Rodrigo] Huescas, and it just doesn’t stop. Santi [Giménez] is… well, he’s there, and ‘Pelón’ Chávez is in Moscow.
“If everyone were healthy, I’d say the list is pretty much done. But now we have to wait for recovery timelines and evaluate the new guys we tested today. We’ve had to adjust quite a few things.”
Aguirre praises debutant Fidalgo
Following Álvaro Fidalgo’s first appearance for Mexico, Aguirre spoke positively about the midfielder’s performance and how “El Maguito” has adapted to the squad.
“I liked his confidence in asking for the ball,” the head coach said. “He doesn’t lose possession. Álvaro fit right in - he’s just another member of the group. We need to see more players, but within what we had planned, we met the objective.”
“Nobody has a guaranteed spot”
Speaking about the goalkeeper situation, Aguirre made it clear he does not plan to rotate goalkeepers at the World Cup - especially with Guillermo Ochoa back in the mix.
“It’s tough,” he said. “I haven’t used the same keeper consistently, and I’m calm because they’re all at a similar level and support each other. I’ll say this: nobody has a guaranteed spot. No one can get too comfortable.”
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