INGLEWOOD, California — There's nothing like the soap opera The ups and downs of the Mexican team in the Copa América.
Heading into the tournament, there were widespread questions about the script written by manager Jaime “Jimmy” Lozano, someone who is appropriately and occasionally referred to as “The actor” due to his family's involvement in the entertainment industry. Looking to renew his project ahead of the 2026 World Cup, Lozano surprised many in the Mexican soccer world when he revealed that well-known but aging stars like Hirving “Chucky” Lozano (without relationship with Jaime), Guillermo Ochoa and Raúl Jiménez were no longer necessary.
Aiming for a much-needed reset, Mexico's coach brought younger faces into the mix, which worked, at first. Last Saturday, in the opening match of the tournament against Jamaica, optimism emerged after a narrow but well-deserved 1-0 victory. Perfectly symbolized by a game-winning goal by Gerardo Arteaga (a reserve player who had been promoted to starter in Lozano's rebuild), success through opportunities for a new cast seemed to be a viable and exciting path.
But as is the norm with TV soapsUnexpected twists and turns followed.
During the match against Jamaica, Mexico's captain and arguably the main character, Edson Álvarez, suffered a hamstring injury that forced an early substitution. Then, on Tuesday night before the midweek clash against Venezuela, it was confirmed that Álvarez would not be officially available for the remainder of the Cup.
In line with the general emotions that have come into play with the Mexico melodrama, the national team abandoned the standard protocol of a press release and instead published on Tuesday a sentimental video of Álvarez himself that confirmed his absence.
“Unfortunately, my participation in the Copa América has come to an end,” said the Mexico captain the night before the clash with Venezuela.
You can't blame Álvarez and the national team for recording the video, in fact there was a feeling of solidarity in the social media post that also shared their Together and united (together and united) motto that has been used internally by the staff. That said, it says a lot about the enormous importance that the player had in deciding to publish the video (the same was not done with the injury of goalkeeper Luis Malagón) and it is difficult to maintain that solidarity on the field when there is a notable hole in the heart of the XI.
Without the captain, there was fear about Mexico's chances of success. Despite the pre-match festivities brewing on a picturesque sunny day with a backdrop of Hollywood in the distance, things got tense once the opening whistle blew.
The statistics, at least, point to Mexico doing some things well in the game that would prove to be a difficult episode.
Mexico got more dangerous chances (xG of 2.52, compared to Venezuela's 1.19), maintained more possession (61% to 39%) and made more close recoveries (50 to 45). On paper, Lozano did what he could to give Mexico opportunities, but his team's limitations, as well as his own, arose.
Desperately needing a new star to take center stage in their act, it was difficult to really identify a player who really stepped up for Mexico against Venezuela. Credit must be given to midfielder Luis Chávez, as well as central defenders such as Johan Vásquez and new captain César Montes who acted as quarterbacks with their long passes at NFL headquarters, but more was still expected from these players and others who They were more like extras on the field. available performance.
To make matters worse, Montes was substituted at half-time due to injury, marking the second consecutive match in which a Mexico captain was eliminated for that reason.
“I still don't know,” said Lozano about the state of health of the Almería player after the game. “At half-time they told us that it would be difficult for him to start in the second half… today we don't know if we will have him in the next game.”
As for Lozano, one couldn't help but notice that he was outmaneuvered as a coach in the second half after Venezuelan Fernando Batista made the right adjustments and tactical changes that helped earn Salomón Rondón's game-winning penalty in the 57th minute. .
“At halftime he adjusted a little bit and it worked,” Lozano said of Batista. “You have to give him credit for the adjustments he made after that.” [in the game]”.
Lozano, looking at his bench, might have realized that he hampered his odds by not including veterans like Chucky or Jimenez, among others.
The South Americans grew with confidence, while The Tri The heavy players failed to take advantage of countless moments in the final third. Even when he received a penalty in the 87th minute, giving Mexico another chance to save a point, midfielder Orbelín Pineda could not change the score that was cemented at 1-0 in favor of the opponents at the final whistle.
Far from a great ovation for the spectacle, boos and glasses of beer rained down from the stands of SoFi Stadium, dissatisfied with the tragic drama of Mexico's second act in the group stage of the Cup.
For Lozano's team, the result marked the first time that Mexico lost to Venezuela in an official competition. The defeat also meant that The Tri They had lost four consecutive times against Conmebol rivals in non-friendly matches. Mexico could get the job done against a Concacaf rival like Jamaica last week, but against Conmebol? That's a distinctly different story, and perhaps a dark omen ahead of the final group game against Ecuador on Sunday.
To qualify for the round of 16, Lozano and his men will need to defeat the Ecuadorians to secure a place in the top eight. However, to the credit of the coach who also lost a group stage last summer before winning the Gold Cup, he is not giving up on his project.
“We have 90 minutes [left] and no one is going to get off this ship and we are going to achieve it,” Lozano said. “We are going to achieve it, of that I am sure.”
Lozano's script is not yet finished.
