There was far more to have fun from Mexico‘s 2-0 victory over El Salvador than only a ticket to the 2022 World Cup. Within the dramatic ultimate matchday of CONCACAF’s Octagonal spherical of qualifiers on Wednesday, there was one thing noticeable about El Tri’s type of play: It was enjoyable.
With a spot at Qatar on the road, albeit extra of a formality given the sequence of occasions that might have seen Costa Rica pip Mexico to the ultimate spot, supervisor Gerardo “Tata” Martino was unexpectedly bolder than regular. Versus his cautious method that appeared to have emerged in response to losses in qualifiers to the United States and Canada final November, there was extra freedom towards El Salvador in a setup that featured a complete of 5 modifications from his earlier beginning XI.
Of these modifications, essentially the most noteworthy of alterations was a spot on the bench for 2 of his star wingers: Napoli‘s Hirving “Chucky” Lozano and Sevilla‘s Jesus “Tecatito” Corona. Of their place and basically in control of main the assault, Martino introduced on Alexis Vega and Uriel Antuna, two home Liga MX names which have historically been rotation gamers for the nationwide workforce.
The choice paid off handsomely, and all through the sport, it seemed like Martino was embracing a return to his progressive and forward-thinking type of play that was utilized by the supervisor when he first took cost of Mexico in 2019. After lumbering by 4 earlier qualifiers with two objectives, El Tri abruptly discovered itself up 2-0 by half-time on Wednesday.
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Vega, on the left wing, linked up nicely with striker Raul Jimenez and supplied a lot of key passes. Antuna, on the suitable, finally emerged because the Man of the Match because of scoring a aim within the seventeenth minute and successful a penalty that arrange Jimenez to make it 2-0 by the forty third.
Elsewhere, within the midfield, the unproven duo of Carlos Rodriguez and Erick Gutierrez stepped up as a cellular partnership that rapidly helped shift the ball vertically. Though Mexico have been unable to seek out one other aim within the second half, it remained a satisfying efficiency from Martino and his males. Notably, they have been in a position to accomplish this and qualify for the World Cup by an altered XI that put loads of religion on a couple of backup gamers that followers have been craving for.
“At some point that opportunity is going to come,” stated Antuna (who hasn’t began since January for Mexico) to TUDN after the match. “I have to be ready for it when I get it.”
Martino was happy with some facets of the sport however left room for constructive criticism. “I really liked the circulation of the ball that we had,” he stated. “I think that we improved our chance creation but I insist that we still need to do better with the final ball and have more conviction in the final third.”
Not too way back within the Octagonal, El Tri have been outlined by a scarcity of objectives by low-scoring attracts and slim wins. The two-0 win over El Salvador was the primary time that they’ve scored greater than as soon as of their 4 qualifiers at house this 12 months, and the primary time of their complete Octagonal run that they’ve scored twice within the first half of a qualifier.
Martino’s insistence on avoiding dangers in most of 2022 hasn’t been fairly and has unquestionably pressured some tough conditions wherein Mexico are chasing late equalizers or game-winners. Forward of the El Salvador encounter, that led to some questioning his standing with the nationwide workforce.
Earlier on Monday, ESPN Mexico’s John Sutcliffe acknowledged that Martino’s future with El Tri might be put to a vote by Mexican membership house owners, itemizing Tigres UANL’s Miguel “Piojo” Herrera as a potential back-up plan. Though ESPN Mexico’s Rene Tovar reported on Tuesday that Mexican Soccer Federation president Yon de Luisa had dismissed any speak of Martino leaving and that he would stay with the workforce if it reached the World Cup in Qatar, it was apparent that stress was starting to construct.
Martino took his possibilities, doubtlessly together with his job on the road, and claimed not solely a ticket to the World Cup, however a second spot within the Octagonal desk — ending one place forward of their resurgent U.S. rivals and in addition stage on 28 factors with leaders Canada. Have been it not for the odd tactical change or poor ending, Mexico might have stolen a place on the prime. However it issues not. As we have seen earlier than, the qualifiers for the World Cup can look very completely different than the workforce that reveals up on the precise event. Securing an invite is simply a part of the journey and we’ll see if Mexico’s coach leans extra in direction of his cautious or adventurous aspect going ahead.
“This was something I expected from us and it’s something [qualifying for the World Cup] that we needed to do,” stated Martino after the match. “Now, what’s next is preparing for the objective. Tomorrow begins a totally different stage.”
