Mexico’s final chance to qualify for the 2014 World Cup will kick off today as ‘El Tri’ takes on New Zealand in the first leg of their two-leg qualifying playoff series (3:30pm, Univision).
Mexico is fielding a squad made up only of domestic players as new manager Miguel Herrera tries to build a squad around his successful Club America squad. That means ‘El Tri’ will be without the likes of Chicharito Hernandez and Gio Dos Santos as they try to secure their place in the Brazil World Cup.
The Kiwis are heavy underdogs in the series, but they will look to frustrate Mexico with their defensive-oriented approach. A good result in the first leg could set up New Zealand to complete the upset in the return leg in New Zealand.
If you will be watching today’s match, please feel free to share your thoughts, opinions and some play-by-play in the comments section below.
Enjoy the action.
Yellow cards carry over from previous rounds? That can’t be right can it?
Chicherto would have missed this match anyway because of yellow cards so it probably does.
But Mexico played 10 games in the Hex and New Zealand played only 6 on Oceania. Not really fair but I guess it doesn’t really mater at this point.
No, he was cleared to play this game.
Hernandez would not have missed this game had they called him in. He was never shown a yellow card against Costa Rica.
Well either way my point was cards carry over
Well now that New Zealand is actually trying to play and relieve some of the pressure they look a lot less like uber ####. Minas Tirith this is not.
Clearly it’s working, but I still can’t imagine the US in this situation trotting out that lineup. Seriously, here’s a stab at the US equivalent to Mexico’s lineup for the most critical game of the cycle:
Agudelo Wondolowski
Corona Larentowicz Grabavoy
Castillo Bocanegra Borchers Orozco Lichaj
Perkins
So many more of the top Mexican players actually play in Mexico though. You’d still be playing the Donovans and the Dempseys as well (and Nick Rimando would start at keeper)
you would play them instead of:
EJ Wondolowski
Agudelo Dempsey Donovan
Beckerman
Evans Besler Gonzalez Farrell
Rimando
Donovan, Dempsey, Gonzalez, Zusi, Beasley, rimando, besler, and Johnson would all be called in if it were a North American team.
Damn! Maybe Mexico should always play without its European based players. 🙂
“Puuutooooo!” Stay classy, Mexico City.
Kind of hard to tell how good Mexico really is since NZ just plain sucks…..but then, Mexico was having problems beating this kind of teams all thru the hexagonal.
I’m not watching, but Jamaica v NZ in Kingston: Who wins?
if we can count FAIR PLAY, New Zealand!!!
Jamaica by a lot.
Who knows. My guess is Jamaica 1-0 but it’d have to be an own goal.
Jamaica.
If we count sailing, Kiwis win going away.
They can’t even complete uncontested passes. Why am I still watching this? Why are any of us watching this?
For the ads?
Costa Rica must be thinking, “And we had to play Uruguay…”
yes, I Know, isn’t it hilarious???
You’re welcome Mexico. For giving you this chance to qualify for the World Cup against the most awful national team I’ve seen.
and believe me, we really thank you, and the TV Companies and sponsors do likewise, a lot of money was in jeopardy.
No doubt. Frankly, even I would rather Mexico in the World Cup than this other “team”.
I’m sure you really do thank us. Can we assume you’ll leave the bags of urine home next time we play you? Somehow I doubt it.
We’ll leave the urine, but only if we can still drown out your national anthem with boos and chant Osama.
sure, I try to talk to the guys.
Why are you taking credit for what the Mens NT did?
is a figure of speech… I know who played.
Kinda glad this mexican team waited until now to get going.
haha yeah that’s what’s going on
Seriously this is the most inept bunkering ever. “Hey, let’s give them time and space on the ball, and also not mark them in the box. That should work out great!” said no one ever.
It’s hilarious, because they’re keeping their lines, but just not marking anyone. They’re just watching the ball and reacting slowly.
The “said no one ever” joke is a bit played out, no?
Good god they are TERRIBLE.
They are worse than Tahiti. This is ridiculous.
OFC shouldn’t have a spot at all.
Rephrased: the OFC shouldn’t exist. The AFC stretches from Damascus to Sydney. Split it in 2 along the Middle East, merge the OFC into the new East
Have to do something.
If this is one of the best OFC teams… they will ruin entire brackets in a major tournament.
Don’t look now, but somehow this NZ team was the only team at WC 2010 not to lose match, and finished ahead of holders Italy in their group.
Of course, they are also the same team that couldn’t get past New Caledonia in their own regional championship, resulting in Tahiti showing up at the Confed Cup.
4 years ago: Nelsen and Reid with Blackburn and Midtjylland. Now its an aging amateur and a guy from the A league
Well Tahiti has already done that…nice goal celebration though.
The #### kinda defending was that? A spring back to the goal line or to the ball?
Lights out
Chris Wood looked a player there
The NZ players are just standing around and watching the ball, and their eyes are like 2 seconds behind where the ball is at all times. Can’t bunker like that.
82% possession? Are you kidding me?
That would mean 18% for NZ….
I’m sorry but I don’t think I’ve seen 18% from NZ….
No wonder Mexico wasn’t worried, NZ is very very not good, because Mexico is not good
Well the next time someone says Concacaf gets too many spots I think we can point to Asia as needing to give up one first.
NZ is in OFC, not AFC
And even a half spot might be too much for OFC.
They’re in discussions with the AFC to move the qualifying spot for the OFC directly into AFC’s final round which would A) prevent a really crappy playoff game between say Chile and Tahiti if New Zealand fails, B) allow a more solid OFC team some leeway for qualifying rather than going to the Azteca and C) give the OFC (new zealand really) more games against solid opposition which would support the game as a whole.
Probably a good idea, but at that point, doesn’t OFC just become – functionally – a subconfederation of AFC from which NZ almost always qualifies with an auto berth in AFC’s final group stage?
Is OFC’s top qualifier (ok.. NZ) worthy of that?
We’ve gotta keep in mind that 4 years ago, they beat the 5th best team in Asia to get there pretty easily (it was 0-0, 0-1 but they were always the more dangerous) before holding 3 times at the World Cup. Australia became the 2-3rd best team in Asia the moment they moved. New Zealand automatically qualifying to the top 10 of asia wouldn’t be that unfair to anybody.
They aren’t worse than Jordan.
… you don’t think NZ plays in AFC, do you?
No AFC play in spot went to Jordan who got beat 5-0 at home earlier
and I understand Uruguay would probably beat this Mexico team as well but still
Last time they sneaked by Costa Rica by 1. Lets not sell Concacaf short.
Oh, you were referring to the other game. My bad!
Mine too!
yes indeed.. now for me is hard to imagine how awful Portugal or Sweden supporters will feel when one of them is eliminated, and more knowing that there will be teams in WC that don’t deserve to play it.
Sure but they at least have the Euros and if the draw had just been done by FIFA rank they wouldn’t have been playing each other anyway
All Panama had to do was bunker with 10 men after 90 mins vs the US. They couldn’t do that. Now, Mexico is making it easy with a 2-0 lead. It could get ugly. I don’t think NZ can beat Mexico 2-0 or 3-0 at home. Book your tickets if you’re a Mexican supporter.
I’m driving across the border into TJ right now to place this bet: Mexico is obviously going to advance against this so-called professional team from New Zealand. Who wants to bet that we wind up facing Mexico at some stage in Brazil in June and they knock us out? Oh, the irony. The sickening irony…
yeahhhhhhhh. No.
get outta her with that
Can’t watch the match at work sadly but I think Mexico with over 80% possession in the first half tells you all you need to know about this game.
2 is manageable in Wellington but they are playing pin the tail on a donkey next to a cliff right now.
New Zealand are really missing Winston Reid right now… And why is Rojas on the bench?
Wow did Bob Ley say 82% possession for Mexico? Holy cow.
Kiwi fans must be out of their minds right now. Did someone forget to tell them the game has started.
Mexico is shaking hands like the game is over at halftime. But with 82% possession and a two goal lead, it may as well be.
Uh, no penalty for New Zealand right there??
Painful to watch. Too bad Panama is not playing.
I had a feeling NZ would faint at the sight of Azteca. Seems like that’s what happened…
Mexico still looks awful–no doubt. Their goals have been absolute garbage and New Zealand has actually got some real chances and moved down the pitch.
I hope they think this is good enough team to move forward and go more domestic. A good team would do bad, bad things to this Mexico team.
???? I am not sure they even have a shot yet not sure what real chances you are referring to. Not many teams would look good trying to create space with so many players defending. But you are right a good team would do bad things to this Mexico team.
dude, they have 2 shots…total. and less than 20% possession. so no, they didn’t. NZ is getting smacked around by a mediocre Mexico team.
this guy is watching a different game
as usual.. zing!
🙂
Well, I guess we should thank FIFA for not facing our team against Uruguay… Jordan and New Zealand should be angry by now…
It rotates. Next cycle it will be Uruguay or some other CONMEBOL team.
we are so lucky uff!
Nope. It was drawn.
interesting, this Mexico team looks quality today but they would be getting destroyed by Uruguay right now if that was the matchup..
It’s drawn, but there’s a 2/3 chance that CONCACAF won’t get matched with CONMEMBOL.
It’s a shame, really, because I would say 4th place CONCACAF would beat 5th place AFC or OFC 80% of the time.
Well, the bunker is not working for NZ but I’m afraid attacking Mexico could be even worse for them.
shades of Egypt in Ghana
lol not that bad….. yet….
Goodnight, sweet puppy. Have fun running around up there in doggy heaven.
Mr. Driver, you can take your foot off the pedal now…
Wonder how Panama would’ve done?
Probably pretty well. That being said, the Dely Valdes brothers were just fired which was rather…flabbergasting.
Indeed. Very, very weird decision.
They were fired?!?!? What on earth is their federation thinking?? Los Dely Valdes are the best thing to ever happen to their national team!
If i’m running an MLS team right now, there are two names on my list and both are Panamanian.
+1 terrible decision by Panama, i guess you could blame him for allowing his team to quit when it mattered most.. but as Joamiq said, best thing to happen to that team ever..
hopefully an MLS club picks them up.. Vancouver or Seattle could be good?
this could get really ugly for NZ.
Mexico still looks pretty bad, despite being up 2-nil. New Zealand looks horrible, completely rattled by the atmosphere, they’re surely not used to playing in an environment like Azteca.
this game is just to save the ship.. believe me, Herrera is a great coach, from Lavolpe school, (but with a different temper) he will make a very competitive team if he can save this.
I’ve never been so sad to watch international football.
Seriously, this is a national team in a spot for the World Cup? For %%%% sake they are awful.
A lot of teams have looked very bad in the azteca over the years.
This really looks like the best crowd I’ve seen at Azteca in awhile too
Beat down coming.
There’s the 2nd. This looks very bad.
There goalie is the only thing keeping it from being 5 -0 already
This is just an onslaught
New Zealand looks like a college team. But, even when Mexico scores they don’t look very good. And really, your going to celebrate that much?
Nice Joamiq. Jinxing the puppy.
my bad 🙁
🙁
Dude, Rafa Marquez, woof.
and there it is. Moss finally makes a mistake.
It’s kind of a miracle that Mexico hasn’t scored yet. So far this is like watching a puppy get repeatedly run over by a car, but somehow emerge unscathed
Whoops, there it is. Poor puppy.
“Its like a sort of hit the goalkeeper tournament for Mexico”. I’m not sure if I’m laughing with or at this commentary.
Its a good thing that New Zealand isn’t Sunderland because Chris Wood would never stop hearing crap. He on such an isolated island he might as well head back to Wellington now.
New Zealand can take heart tonight in their local mythology of Gandalf the Grey’s great defense against fiery balrog Durin’s Bane, a story traditionally passed down from father to child by the light of the television .
You sir, need to put down your bong.
There weren’t commentaries for like half the MLS playoff games… but THIS gets one?
Remind me again, how many of the MLS playoff teams are going to the World Cup? Because one of these teams is.
How many of the MLS playoff teams are the hated enemy of US National Team fans? Because one of these teams is.
If there wasn’t one someone would complain. So I guess sometimes you just can’t win.
170 comments disagree.