Mexico were able to start Copa America off on the right foot but it’s a 1-0 victory over Jamaica that raises plenty of questions for coach Jaime Lozano. El Tri were booed off the pitch at half after only putting one shot on target, but it was another incident in the half that will bring worry for Lozano. West Ham United midfielder and Mexico captain Edson Alvarez had to be replaced after the 30th minute of play pulling up after running to make a challenge.
He struggled to make it off the pitch even with the help of trainers, being replaced by Luis Romo, but it’s yet to be determined if he will miss time and for how long.
But thanks to a cool finish from left back Gerardo Arteaga, Mexico were able to avoid an upset as El Tri didn’t wake up until Michail Antonio’s goal was called back due to VAR.
Where concern sets in is that this is a Concacaf side that Mexico should be familiar with but they struggled to see off the Reggae Boyz. Mexico are one of the North American teams with a rich history in Copa America making the final twice, but with Venezuela defeating a 10-man Ecuador, this is a group that could come down to the final day.
If Lozano doesn’t fix some of the issues from Saturday, such as struggling to get Santiago Gimenez the ball and Julian Quinones not being able to get in behind the defense, but there will be less space in Mexico’s remaining games. They won’t even have the luxury of facing Ecuador without Enner Valencia after the forward was red-carded due to a reckless tackle while facing Venezuela.
El Tri are in a similar situation to the United States where this tournament needs to validate that they are on the right track and this match doesn’t provide confidence for that. It’s good that Mexico kept their composure late to see out three points but Mexico should’ve dominated against Jamaica. This is a different generation as Lozano is overseeing a rebuild but picking up less than a point versus Venezuela may make it hard to advance from the group.
Mexico have already gone through three managers since 2022 so a fourth before the World Cup would be another setback. The issues with the Mexican national team run deeper than the coach but the time is now to begin turning them around. With a World Cup on home soil in 2026, time waits for no one.
KVSP