Mexico had not fallen in the first round of a World Cup since Argentina in 1978. In 2022 the team was again unable to make it to the round of 16 despite a valiant effort and getting some help from Argentina. Ultimately Mexico won their game 2-1, and were just one goal short. The team had a ton of goal scoring chances to make the game 3-0 however, they fell into the Saudi Arabia offside trap twice. Essentially having two goals that found the back of the net called back for offside. Where does Mexico go from here?
This Is Mexico’s Reality
The 3 games that Mexico played in the World Cup helped expose their true identity in a sense. In many ways the first round exit can help them moving forward. Otherwise, a bad result versus France for example or even a good one could mask the reality of Mexican soccer. This is a team that’s still quite a few steps behind Argentina. Even if Argentina had to rely on Messi magic to beat Mexico. Argentina needs to figure out who they are going to be in the post Messi era, but that’s a conversation for a different day. At the same time Mexico proved that they are on par with a middle of the pack European team like Poland.
Mexico could argue that they are a better team than Poland. Looking back Mexico probably should’ve pressed the issue more in that game offensively. However, Martino probably feared that a Poland counter could bounce you from the tournament after the first game. The biggest takeaway then for Mexico is that they are in fact two steps away from being able to play Argentina head on at this point. That’s a true concern.
What Needs To Change Moving Forward?
Whoever takes over the national team needs to find an identity for this team. That should go beyond playing a 4-3-3 or a 4-4-2 or with a back 5 whatever. For example, we know Pep Guardiola’s teams are going to want to have long possessions, and base their game on quick short passes. That goes beyond the formation that he’ll use on a given game. Simeone is currently not the most liked coach in the world, but for 10 years we knew that we were getting an intense team that played good defense. Again that goes beyond the formation.
Pachuca’s Memo Almada can be the man for the job. Particularly if Mexico wants to have a team that’s intense and that fights for the ball in every part of the field. The hiring of Almada would also almost force some of the old heads out. Since it’s hard to picture Hector Herrera or Andres Guardado playing with the level of intensity that Memo Almada likes his teams to have. Regardless of who you bring along make sure that they have a defined play style that they can permeate on their Mexico squad.
Where Is Mexico Heading Into 2026?
The media after this loss is going to have a field day pointing out everything that is wrong with Mexican soccer. There are certainly instances in which the overall structure of Mexican soccer can be perfected. Sadly it’s going to be hard to really do much of anything heading into 2026. Particularly when it comes to the national team. Mexico will not be headed to the next under 20 championship, or the Olympics after failing to qualify for both tournaments in the same qualifier. Without World Cup qualifying to worry about it’s a mixture of friendlies and Gold Cups from now until 2026!
On that end, things don’t look good. The positives come from some of the players that proved at this tournament that they can compete at a high level. It’s club play though where most Mexico players are going to have to develop and shine.
