After a couple of unsuccessful attempts, including a rout against Uruguay, the Mexican team will try to close its preparation for the Copa América in the United States with decorum when it faces Brazil in a friendly match.
El Tri beat Bolivia 1-0 in their first match, but they did so with the U23 team reinforced with some senior players, and then lost in the middle of the week 4-0 against the Celeste, victim of a hat trick by Darwin Núñez.
In that second match, coach Jaime Lozano paid the price for leaving several players from the starting team out of the lineup.
“We are not throwing away these preparation games, they will help us a lot for what is coming,” said Lozano. “Today we didn’t have to enjoy it, but it’s for them to live it, suffer it and move forward, everyone has the mental strength to get out of a bad result that doesn’t end anyone’s career.”
The fiasco against Uruguay fueled questions about Lozano’s continuity at the head of the team, despite promises from the leaders to keep him until the 2026 World Cup regardless of the poor results.
Mexico has only been able to win two of its last six games, one of those being the game against Bolivia. Among those is an unappealable defeat against the United States, in the final of the CONCACAF Nations League.
For the Copa América, Lozano and the leaders are trying to make a generational change and left out several references from the past such as Guillermo Ochoa, Hirving Lozano and Raúl Jiménez.
“It hurts us, but we are calm, this generational change is going to help us mentally,” said forward Guillermo Martínez, one of the new additions to the national team. “There are high-quality players who know how to recover from any adversity, and the group is united.”
The Mexicans make their debut in the Copa América on June 22 against Jamaica. Then they will measure forces with Venezuela and close the first phase against Ecuador.
Although Lozano has not revealed the lineup, he did say that against Brazil he will try to go with the best available. This means the returns to ownership of players like César Montes and Johan Vázquez, in addition to Luis Chávez, Erick Sánchez, Julián Quiñones and Santiago Giménez.
The return of goalkeeper Luis Malagón, who is the favorite to replace Ochoa, but is in doubt due to a muscle injury, was also expected to return.
“We are trying to build something in the medium and long term, project a better team in the future and generate competition, it is time to trust, to remain united,” said Lozano. “Losses hurt and this is one more, one in which the team falters, but we want the team to be unbreakable.”
Unlike Uruguay, which is second in the CONMEBOL qualifiers, Brazil is not going through its best moment and is in sixth place. The Copa América will be the first big test with its new coach Dorival Júnior.
Additionally, for the match against the Mexicans it is highly likely that some players who have just finished their seasons in Europe will not participate. Such is the case of Rodrygo, Vinicius Júnior and Eder Militao, who have just won the Champions League with Real Madrid.
