[North and Central America and Caribbean Final Qualifiers]
10 Matches 4 Wins 6 Ties 0 Loss (18 Points)
| 2/2/97 | Vs. Canada | Win | 4-0 |
| 3/16/97 | Vs. Costa Rica | Draw | 0-0 |
| 4/20/97 | Vs. U.S.A. | Draw | 2-2 |
| 6/8/97 | Vs. El Salvador | Win | 0-1 |
| 10/5/97 | Vs. El Salvador | Win | 6-0 |
| 10/12/97 | Vs. Canada | Draw | 2-2 |
| 11/2/97 | Vs. U.S.A. | Draw | 0-0 |
| 11/9/97 | Vs. Costa Rica | Draw | 3-3 |
| 11/6/97 | Vs. Jamaica | Draw | 0-0 |
| Offense |
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Defense |
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| Organization |
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Experience |
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| Talent |
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Capacity to surprise |
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Mexico won through the qualifiers with clearly superior strength, but immediately after the end of the qualifiers switched coaches from Miludinovich to Lapuente and is attempting to put more attack in its soccer in preparation for the tournament in France. Other than the two times that it has hosted the World Cup itself, Mexico has not posted any significant results in the World Cup. Although its domestic leagues flourish and it is blessed with a wealth of talented athletes, one can not help but think that having a comparatively easy region to qualify from has been a curse in disguise. The fact that none of Mexico's players play outside of Mexico except in the U.S. Major League Soccer also speaks about the level of the individual athletes.
The goalkeeper is the returning Campos and the defense has center backs Suarez and Davino, with Pardo on the right and Ramirez on the left. In midfield, the defensive position is manned by either Villa or Bernal, the game makers are Garcia-Aspe and Luna and Blanco is responsible for the attack. On the front line is the "Luis combination" of Hernandez and Garcia plus Palencia, Alpharo, and Abundis, so Mexico has its horses lined up. The system is a basic 4-4-2, but as explained earlier, when Ramirez moves up to midfielder, the system changes to a 3-5-2 and when Blanco plays more on the front line, there are three on the top.
For Lapuente, whose slogan is aggressive soccer, one thing to worry about is that the defense is vulnerable to opponents who push through speedily. Whatever strategy Mexico adopts, the key battle will be the match with South Korea. If Mexico can win that match, they may be able to catch a wave to ride.
*FEDERACION MEXICANA
DEFUTBOL ASSOCIATION
[Address]
- Abraham Gonzalez 74,
- Col, Juarez, C.P. 06600,
- Mexico, D.F
[Established] 1927
*11th World Cup
(1930, 1950, 1954, 1958,
1962, 1966, 1970, 1978,
1986, 1994, 1998) |
Ramon RAMIREZ
* Midfielder
Holds the key to Mexico's fate
An all-around player who is a real threat
Ramirez's best points are his ability to breakthrough opposition defenses with his wealth of speed, his dribbling featuring sharp cutbacks, and his powerful shooting from his left foot. As one of Mexico's technicians, he is long on offensive talent, but in the World Cup qualifiers, he played at side back at the behest of then coach Miludinovich. It is ironic that the fuss about that move was the trigger that led to the resignation of Miludinovich. This is proof of just how much the entire people of Mexico recognize Ramirez's offensive strength. However, there can be no doubt that he is an all-around player and has the weapons and the technique to play any position other than goalkeeper.
Manuel LAPUENTE
Lapuente was a mediocre player, but his talents blossomed as a coach. Lapuente led Puebla to two league championships in the 80s and built a golden age for Nekakusa in the 90s.
He also has experience as the national team coach in 1991 and this is his second turn in that post. Although he lacks the charisma of his predecessor Miludinovich, he is consistent in his advocacy of attacking soccer and has received the complete support of the mass media and the fans. He was born on March 17, 1944 and is 54 years old.
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