How important is the U.S. game now?
By Eric Gomez
ESPN INSIDER
Friday's cavalcade of World Cup qualifiers featured two of the world's most TV-friendly moments right here in CONCACAF. In Denver, the U.S. and Costa Rica played on despite a raging blizzard that left some of us wondering aloud how the game was played while an ocean away UEFA officials postponed Northern Ireland's qualifier against Russia for the same reason. Nevertheless, the Americans wound up with a 1-0 win that launched them into second place in the Hex.
Honduras' weather also proved a massive talking point. Several people in the Estadio Olimpico stands -- many of whom had been there since 10 a.m. when the doors opened -- fainted amid the intense heat that reached nearly 100 degrees Fahrenheit. On the pitch, Mexico opened up a 2-0 lead, but El Tri let their first win in San Pedro Sula since 1965 slip away in exactly three minutes.
The 2-2 draw left Mexico with only two points in the Hexagonal and sets up a must-win match Tuesday night against their biggest rivals, the United States. With such a massive game on the horizon, will the proverbial panic button be pushed in Mexico City should El Tri come away with anything other than a win?
Mexico displayed flashes of its usual self in San Pedro Sula. Giovani Dos Santos was relentless on the counter, and Andres Guardado used his wing with aplomb to carve up Honduras on more than one occasion, leading El Tri to the first goal of the game in the process. Javier Hernandez was clinical and even spectacular with his finishes, putting away his only two chances.
So what happened? Overconfidence, bad substitutions and Maza Rodriguez, in a nutshell. Mexico could have pushed on for a third goal and was especially wasteful after the Honduran crowd was firmly taken out of the game. Then, Chicharito went down with heat exhaustion and cramps. Ditto Dos Santos, forcing two subs that offered Mexico no chance at a third goal in the short term.
Omar Bravo, absent from El Tri since before the last World Cup, and Raul Jimenez, the 21-year-old Club America prodigy who is barely getting his national team career started, were clumsily lumped together by Chepo de la Torre in a clear display of a man who was confident his team would not cough up the lead in the final half hour. The inclusions of Bravo and Jimenez handcuffed Mexico's offense toward the end after Honduras roared back and failed to prevent the draw itself.
Much was said of the call-ups for veterans Jonny Magallon and Gerardo Torrado, two players who are tough on offensive players and have vast experience in CONCACAF qualifiers but are nearing the ends of their careers. The conventional wisdom dictated that Chepo was intending to use these guys and not give them a farewell tour in San Pedro Sula and Mexico City on the bench.
No one would have faulted Chepo for pushing at least one of them into the game after the weather necessitated a couple of changes for Mexico. After all, you're the visiting manager, in a tough stadium where your team hasn't won since 1965. Putting Bravo and Jimenez in sent the wrong message, and the team collapsed under its own overconfidence.
Then there's Rodriguez. The Club America defender told reporters he was coming to Mexico to fight for a place on the national team. Now, his sloppy play will likely preclude him from future call-ups. The former VfB Stuttgart man failed to match Carlo Costly's jumping header that lead to Honduras' first goal. Minutes later, there he was committing unnecessary contact on Costly in the box to push a jumpy ref in Courtney Campbell to call an iffy penalty kick that sealed the deal.
In essence, Mexico gave two points away in San Pedro Sula, buried under its own mistakes. So what does it mean for Tuesday's match?
Deja vu, for one. Mexico has been in this situation twice before, even more intensely so, with alarms ringing. Qualifiers in 2001 and 2009 against the USMNT came under similar pressure as to whether El Tri would even qualify for the World Cup, let alone be able to beat the United States at home. El Tri did so on both occasions, relying on focused, intelligent play that recognized the stakes at all times.
They'll have to do the same thing Tuesday, or it could mean De La Torre's job. A win at the Estadio Azteca would offer the same instant calm that American fans are enjoying after a disgusting spectacle in Denver on Friday. The fact is that this Hex group is so tight right now, and three points can swing a team into the upper echelon quickly.
With Rodriguez out due to suspension Tuesday, the first question will be who fills in for the outgoing captain? De la Torre will likely call on 20-year-old Diego Reyes to fill in for his Club America teammate. A veteran of the London Olympic Games, Reyes is no stranger to pressure-packed games. The issue of the goalkeeper position will also likely rear its ugly head once more.
Jesus Corona was removed after the Jamaica game despite posting a clean sheet. Memo Ochoa gave up two goals in Honduras despite his best efforts and stopping a penalty kick that caromed back to a Honduran attacker. Even then, expect De La Torre to employ a rotation policy and give Corona another shot at the full-time job Tuesday.
The flow of Mexico's offense with a one-striker set is difficult to ignore, and with Oribe Peralta out to injury, De La Torre will likely stick with the 4-2-3-1 that allows Chicharito and Dos Santos freedom to move around and link up. Javier Aquino, on the right wing, is on thin ice after a quiet performance in San Pedro Sula; Pachuca's Angel Reyna could step in.
If, however, De La Torre reverts to using a 4-2-2-2, expect Aquino's spot to be taken over by Dos Santos, with the second striker position filled by Jimenez. The lanky, skilled striker is used to playing second fiddle for a featured forward, as he does so quite often in front of Christian Benitez at Club America.
While we could point to the fact that De La Torre still has yet to lose an official tournament game in his two-and-a-half-year tenure with Mexico, it's also true he has yet to win in the Hexagonal. A stumble against the United States could be a third strike no one wants to see go down.
The world of difference between 0-0-3 and 1-0-2, for instance, is the difference between calling your team "undefeated" and "still without a win." It could also mean the difference between calling De La Torre "Mexico's national team manager" and "unemployed."
By Eric Gomez
ESPN INSIDER
Friday's cavalcade of World Cup qualifiers featured two of the world's most TV-friendly moments right here in CONCACAF. In Denver, the U.S. and Costa Rica played on despite a raging blizzard that left some of us wondering aloud how the game was played while an ocean away UEFA officials postponed Northern Ireland's qualifier against Russia for the same reason. Nevertheless, the Americans wound up with a 1-0 win that launched them into second place in the Hex.
Honduras' weather also proved a massive talking point. Several people in the Estadio Olimpico stands -- many of whom had been there since 10 a.m. when the doors opened -- fainted amid the intense heat that reached nearly 100 degrees Fahrenheit. On the pitch, Mexico opened up a 2-0 lead, but El Tri let their first win in San Pedro Sula since 1965 slip away in exactly three minutes.
The 2-2 draw left Mexico with only two points in the Hexagonal and sets up a must-win match Tuesday night against their biggest rivals, the United States. With such a massive game on the horizon, will the proverbial panic button be pushed in Mexico City should El Tri come away with anything other than a win?
Mexico displayed flashes of its usual self in San Pedro Sula. Giovani Dos Santos was relentless on the counter, and Andres Guardado used his wing with aplomb to carve up Honduras on more than one occasion, leading El Tri to the first goal of the game in the process. Javier Hernandez was clinical and even spectacular with his finishes, putting away his only two chances.
So what happened? Overconfidence, bad substitutions and Maza Rodriguez, in a nutshell. Mexico could have pushed on for a third goal and was especially wasteful after the Honduran crowd was firmly taken out of the game. Then, Chicharito went down with heat exhaustion and cramps. Ditto Dos Santos, forcing two subs that offered Mexico no chance at a third goal in the short term.
Omar Bravo, absent from El Tri since before the last World Cup, and Raul Jimenez, the 21-year-old Club America prodigy who is barely getting his national team career started, were clumsily lumped together by Chepo de la Torre in a clear display of a man who was confident his team would not cough up the lead in the final half hour. The inclusions of Bravo and Jimenez handcuffed Mexico's offense toward the end after Honduras roared back and failed to prevent the draw itself.
Much was said of the call-ups for veterans Jonny Magallon and Gerardo Torrado, two players who are tough on offensive players and have vast experience in CONCACAF qualifiers but are nearing the ends of their careers. The conventional wisdom dictated that Chepo was intending to use these guys and not give them a farewell tour in San Pedro Sula and Mexico City on the bench.
No one would have faulted Chepo for pushing at least one of them into the game after the weather necessitated a couple of changes for Mexico. After all, you're the visiting manager, in a tough stadium where your team hasn't won since 1965. Putting Bravo and Jimenez in sent the wrong message, and the team collapsed under its own overconfidence.
Then there's Rodriguez. The Club America defender told reporters he was coming to Mexico to fight for a place on the national team. Now, his sloppy play will likely preclude him from future call-ups. The former VfB Stuttgart man failed to match Carlo Costly's jumping header that lead to Honduras' first goal. Minutes later, there he was committing unnecessary contact on Costly in the box to push a jumpy ref in Courtney Campbell to call an iffy penalty kick that sealed the deal.
In essence, Mexico gave two points away in San Pedro Sula, buried under its own mistakes. So what does it mean for Tuesday's match?
Deja vu, for one. Mexico has been in this situation twice before, even more intensely so, with alarms ringing. Qualifiers in 2001 and 2009 against the USMNT came under similar pressure as to whether El Tri would even qualify for the World Cup, let alone be able to beat the United States at home. El Tri did so on both occasions, relying on focused, intelligent play that recognized the stakes at all times.
They'll have to do the same thing Tuesday, or it could mean De La Torre's job. A win at the Estadio Azteca would offer the same instant calm that American fans are enjoying after a disgusting spectacle in Denver on Friday. The fact is that this Hex group is so tight right now, and three points can swing a team into the upper echelon quickly.
With Rodriguez out due to suspension Tuesday, the first question will be who fills in for the outgoing captain? De la Torre will likely call on 20-year-old Diego Reyes to fill in for his Club America teammate. A veteran of the London Olympic Games, Reyes is no stranger to pressure-packed games. The issue of the goalkeeper position will also likely rear its ugly head once more.
Jesus Corona was removed after the Jamaica game despite posting a clean sheet. Memo Ochoa gave up two goals in Honduras despite his best efforts and stopping a penalty kick that caromed back to a Honduran attacker. Even then, expect De La Torre to employ a rotation policy and give Corona another shot at the full-time job Tuesday.
The flow of Mexico's offense with a one-striker set is difficult to ignore, and with Oribe Peralta out to injury, De La Torre will likely stick with the 4-2-3-1 that allows Chicharito and Dos Santos freedom to move around and link up. Javier Aquino, on the right wing, is on thin ice after a quiet performance in San Pedro Sula; Pachuca's Angel Reyna could step in.
If, however, De La Torre reverts to using a 4-2-2-2, expect Aquino's spot to be taken over by Dos Santos, with the second striker position filled by Jimenez. The lanky, skilled striker is used to playing second fiddle for a featured forward, as he does so quite often in front of Christian Benitez at Club America.
While we could point to the fact that De La Torre still has yet to lose an official tournament game in his two-and-a-half-year tenure with Mexico, it's also true he has yet to win in the Hexagonal. A stumble against the United States could be a third strike no one wants to see go down.
The world of difference between 0-0-3 and 1-0-2, for instance, is the difference between calling your team "undefeated" and "still without a win." It could also mean the difference between calling De La Torre "Mexico's national team manager" and "unemployed."
