Mexico handed Texas-Sized beatdown by Argentina
Mexico’s 2019 U.S. Tour concluded on a sour note tonight with a 4-0 defeat at the hands of Argentina. Mexico had not beaten Argentina in 15 years, and the drought will continue after tonight’s loss.
Mexico controlled the tempo early on, but Argentina would quickly shore up its defense. Argentina began the game playing very physical soccer. The physicality of the match caught Mexico off guard, and this led to mistakes that caused goals during the course of the game.
The first half mistakes were all about Mexico’s inability to stop Argentina’s counterattack. The pairing of Salcedo and Araujo provided minimal comfort in the back. Araujo was the main culprit in the backline as he had a heavy hand in causing two of Argentina’s goals.
Argentina’s first goal began after Araujo tried to needle a pass to Miguel Layun in the midfield. The pass was intercepted by Argentinian midfielder Leandro Paredes who then found Lautaro Martínez alone against the Mexican backline. Martinez easily maneuvered around three Mexican defenders and scored his first of three on the night.
Loss of possession and failure to contain counterattacks hurt Mexico. Argentina’s second goal came after Mexico again lost the ball in the midfield. Nestor Araujo failed to clear a ball away from the box and the ball rebounded to Exequiel Palacios. Palacios placed a pass to a cutting Martinez, who had dashed behind Araujo, and he scored his second goal of the evening.
Mexico gave up a third goal after Salcedo attempted to kick a ball away from the box when the ball accidentally caught his hand. Guillermo Ochoa almost stopped the penalty awarded by the referee, but the ball slipped by Mexico’s keeper and made the score 3-0.
Lautaro Martínez scored his hat trick in the 39th minute of game time. Confusion in Mexico’s midfield resulted in Argentina counterattacking once again. Nestor Araujo failed to stop the attack, and Martínez beat a powerless Guillermo Ochoa to make it 4-0 for the Argentines.
The game concluded with a 4-0 result that left many scratching their heads. Raul Jimenez and Chucky Lozano failed to make an impact on the way a lot of people were looking forward. Lozano always looked for ways to create chances, but his Mexican teammates did not provide much support.
Mexico failed to achieve a shot on goal until the 75th minute of the match. Argentina’s constant pressure on the ball and cutting off passing lanes proved to be a headache for a Mexican side without any answers. Tecatito Corona was the lone bright spot for an uncreative Mexican team. Numerous times Corona dribbled past his defender but failed to create anything of substance in the final third. Hector Herrera looked tired and sluggish on the pitch. Herrera’s performance may be a result of his lack of playing time in Atletico de Madrid.
Argentina’s manager Lionel Scaloni mentioned in the post-game press that even with the game’s result, Mexico is still a formidable team. Tata Martino’s press conference mimicked Scaloni’s comments. Martino exclaimed that neither the 11 game streak or the loss to Argentina defines who Mexico is as a team. Mexico’s manager went on to mention that Mexico will take the result as a lesson and will look to learn to compete with superior teams.
Next for Mexico will be the CONCACAF Nations League. Mexico’s first opponent will be Bermuda on October 11. Martino explained that Mexico will play the competition without most its European based players and preferred not to use players that participated in the Gold Cup-winning squad. Performing well in the new league will hopefully drive away some of the doubts that were created after today’s matchup.
