DIEGO COCCA DEBUTS AS NATIONAL COACH

Last week was the official debut of Argentine coach Diego Cocca as the new coach of the Mexican national team. His debut was, as usual, highly anticipated, especially after coming ahead in the race for the job, ahead of many other fan and media favourites such as Guillermo Almada or Miguel Herrera. Precisely because this let down, as many fans see it, the expectations on Cocca are rather high, as he will try to turn frowns into smiles.

Mexico vs Suriname

The first official game of the Cocca era was against Suriname, the small South American nation that at the time of the match was ranked 139. Compare that to the 15th ranking spot for Mexico. One could be forgiven for anticipating an ‘easy’ game for el Tri, but nothing was farther from the truth. During the first half of the match, Suriname was the better team on the pitch, they forced Acevedo to get his kit dirty on three different occasions, while the greens couldn’t get any substantial play or any resemblance of danger into the opposite field for the first 45 minutes. 

At the start of the second half, Mexico began to get more comfortable in the attack, with Antuna becoming particularly insistent on the right. It wasn’t until the hour played that a set piece put in motion by ‘Charly’ Rodriguez became the first goal in the Cocca era, after Johan Vasquez anticipated his defender and put the ball on the far post with a clinical left shot.

Mexico kept trying, and after Antuna got in the box against two defenders, they knocked him down and won a penalty kick. Despite his top form in Feyenoord, ‘Chaquito’ Gimenez couldn’t net the penalty. Ten before the end of the 90 minutes, another play by ‘El Brujo’ Antuna ended up as a goal, after his cross ended up bouncing off the feet of defender Damil Dankerlui and into his own net.

Mexico vs Jamaica

Looking for a spot in the Final Four, Mexico faced Jamaica at the Azteca Stadium, facing the ever demanding Mexico City fans after a rather disappointing World Cup in Qatar. That disappointment turned into worriedness after Bobby De Cordova-Reid scored a majestic goal from outside the box early in the game at the seventh minute mark. Ten minutes later, however, an equally good play amongst Lozano, Chavez, and Martin was ultimately netted by Orbelin Pineda to even the score

At the half hour, a miscalculation following a corner by Jamaica became their second goal of the night, after ‘Machin’ Alvarez scored in his own goal. Mexico kept trying, with Lozano becoming the most dangerous man coming in from the left. It was this insistence that caused Lozano to get fouled in the box and himself converted the penalty into Mexico’s second goal of the evening.

Both teams kept trying, with Ochoa having to intervene on two different occasions, showing that despite approaching 38 years of age, he remains in great shape. Mexico had clear chances coming from a far shot by Lainez and another good team play that Lozano couldn’t net. The absence of a victory earned the team the disapproval of the fans as they ended up booing the team.

All in all it was not the most promising or exciting start for Diego Cocca, however the team did come through and got the points needed to play the semifinals of the Nations League. The next rival will prove much more demanding as Mexico visits the US in Las Vegas in June.