Unless you’ve been living under a rock you know that a lot of people want Carlos Acevedo to start for the Mexican National team in place of Memo Ochoa. That was made evident by the boo’s that Ochoa had to endure in the team’s last game in Mexico City versus Jamaica. Acevedo had actually started the previous game against Suriname, and if we compare the comments that Acevedo got over what Ochoa did, you can clearly see the media bias.
Yes, Acevedo had a couple of saves that kept Mexico from going into full disaster mode on the road in South America. You could say the same about Ochoa though, he had at least two saves that allowed Mexico to get into the final 4. The first goal was a rocket and yes he looked pretty bad in the second one, but Edson Alvarez put the ball in the back of the net by accident. Should Mexico just turn to Acevedo? If that happens we’ll probably see Acevedo in Ochoa’s place sooner rather than later. We don’t mean between the sticks we mean being booed by the Azteca.
Acevedo Has Conceded The Second Most Goals In Liga MX
One of the biggest knocks on Ochoa is that he’s not good enough to play for good teams in Europe. So since he’s playing for bad teams he concedes a ton of goals. Famed broadcaster Christian Martionoli even said as much in his criticism of Ochoa during last year’s Liga MX playoffs. What was worse for Memo is that he proved Martinoli right minutes into the game.
Some of the same criticism that is placed on Ochoa could certainly apply to Acevedo. He’s currently in the bottom half or the top of the table depending on how you want to look at, of goalkeepers who’ve conceded the most goals this season in Liga MX. Now, it’s fair to say that the goalkeeper cannot be held solely responsible for the goals that he gives up. It’s also true though that Acevedo is getting a pass on a lot of mistakes just because he’s currently the media darling.
Santos Helps More Than Hurts Acevedo At This Point
Santos has hurt Acevedo’s claims to the starting spot in the Mexican national team in the last year or so because the team tends to give up a lot of goals. There’s an argument to be made though that being at Santos ends up helping him quite a bit. The reason we say this is because his mistakes are not national news. Santos is a really small market team that does not have a national following. Ultimately what happens in Torreon is buried between quick highlights.
What ends up on social media are some of the circus-like saves that Acevedo ends up making. To his credit there’s no question that Santos would be worse off if he wasn’t between the sticks. That doesn’t mean though that he’s a consistent goalkeeper worthy of a national team spot. Simply put Acevedo seems to save the most complex of situations yet concede a goal on a second chance shot which he should’ve been able to catch cleanly. He’s not an efficient goalkeeper like Jesus Corona, and Alfredo Talavera were in their prime. He’s more Ochoa, the highlight reel save followed by the inexplicable error.
At This Point Acevedo Should Move To Chivas
On a personal note there’s a good chance that if Acevedo moves to Chivas he will be exposed. Just like every other Chivas goalkeeper in the last 15 years. He won’t be able to hide in the back end of the late night Liga MX highlights. At the same time adding that pressure to himself will be the only way to prove some of the doubters wrong. If he wants to continue to hide at Santos he’ll probably also continue in the shadow of Ochoa ahead of the next World Cup. What’s the best case scenario for Mexico heading into the next World Cup? Hoping and praying that a new young goalkeeper that’s more consistent than Acevedo can fall out of the sky.
