Javier Aguirre has been saying for a while now that the key to the Mexican team’s success at the World Cup is that they are a family. This family, it seems, is on a historic journey.
Mateo Chavez and Julian Quinones scored in a six-minute span early in the second half, and Mexico beat the Czech Republic 3-0 on Wednesday to complete wins in all three of its World Cup group-stage matches for the first time.
The 22-year-old Chávez, in his first World Cup, opened the scoring in the 55th minute and Quiñones scored his second goal of the tournament in the 61st. Alvaro Fidalgo added a goal in stoppage time.
"It was something very beautiful, and I’ll take it with me to the grave," Chávez said of his goal. "I imagined it many times; I dreamed of this."
Mexico's previous best group-stage performance was two wins and one draw, done in 1986 and 2002 and both featuring Javier Aguirre, the first as a midfielder and the second as El Tri's coach. Aguirre is back as coach this year, his third stint leading the national team.
After topping Group A, Mexico will play again at Estadio Azteca on Tuesday in a round-of-32 match against an opponent to be determined.
"Now comes the knockout stage; statistics and data don’t matter. We’re achieving things, but what lies ahead is what counts," Aguirre said. "Neither the players nor I dwell on what we’ve just done; we’re thinking about what’s next."
Mexico is undefeated at nine World Cup matches at the massive stadium, which was packed with 80,824 fans on Wednesday. El Tri has only two losses at Azteca, most recently in World Cup qualifying against Honduras on Sept. 6, 2013.
The match Wednesday included nods to Mexico’s past and future. Gilberto Mora, at 17, became the youngest Mexico player to start in a World Cup. And 40-year-old goalkeeper Guillermo "Memo" Ochoa entered in the 77th minute, joining Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo as the only players to appear in six World Cups.
Mora said "it’s like a dream come true after everything I’ve worked for."
"Now we have tough opponents ahead," he added. "We’re going to keep working to stay on this path. We want to keep advancing because the Mexican national team can become champion."
Mexico's triumph was marred, however, by the return of a homophobic chant by fans that has previously led to fines and other sanctions against its soccer federation. The chant, a one-word slur, was heard near the end of the first half when Czech goalkeeper Matej Kovar took a goal kick.
The Czech Republic was eliminated, finishing with one point in three games.
Mexico is unbeaten in 11 games dating to a friendly loss against Panama last November. And Aguirre has made the most of his roster, using 25 of 26 players in the tournament. Chávez was one of five starters Wednesday who didn't start in the previous win over South Korea.
"Twenty-five of the 26 have played — that is no small detail — nor is it a small detail that everyone celebrates the goals," Aguirre said.
Ochoa, who wears No. 13, played the last 13 minutes in regulation, plus stoppage time, in what's likely to be his last appearance for Mexico. He turns 41 on July 13 and plans to retire from international competition after the World Cup.
"Life — football — had this farewell in store for me, to cap it all off perfectly. For my part, I’ve left it all out there; I gave everything," Ochoa said. "I leave with nothing left because I poured it all into my teams and the national squad."
He was a substitute in the 2006 and 2010 tournaments and started for Mexico in 2014, 2018 and 2022.
"I felt Memo had to play (but) for how long? I never knew until I said, ‘This is the moment,’" Aguirre said. "These are coaching decisions, but it was a night for Mexico to honor its legend, Memo."
Raul Rangel is the starter this year, stepping in for the injured Luis Ángel Malagón, who helped Mexico win the CONCACAF Nations League and Gold Cup last year. Malagón's injury opened the door for Ochoa's return.
Ochoa became the oldest Mexican to play in the World Cup. The previous record holder was Cuauhtémoc Blanco, who was 37 when he played in South Africa in 2014.
After the match, the veteran goalkeeper kissed the goal post before kneeling down and was hugged by the rest of the squad.
"Regarding Memo’s appearance, we don’t know if he’s going to say goodbye or not, but it was a nice tribute for his six World Cups," added Aguirre. "He is a legend — he is Mexican." ___
Reporting by the Associated Press.
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