Mexico and Germany got the Olympics off to a hot start with a 2-2 draw that made for a game that was both well-played and exciting.
One of Mexico's over-23 players, Oribe Peralta, opened the scoring.
Oribe Peralta's goal https://t.co/XgpaPsgRrq
— The18 (@the18soccer) August 4, 2016
Tigers kick-started their 2016 Liga MX Apertura campaign with a fantastic 3-0 victory over Club America at the Azteca Stadium. Javier Aquino scored an unbelievable goal in the 38th minute, Andre-Pierre Gignac added another with a sublime chip in the 59th and Ismael Sosa delivered the final nail in the coffin in the final moments of the match.
With America entering the match undefeated and Tigres having to settle for two opening draws, the visitors closed the gap between the sides to a single point.
Porto and Bayer Leverkusen played to a 1-1 draw Wednesday in a friendly that featured Hector Herrera, Tecatito Corona, Miguel Layun, Diego Reyes and Chicharito?
Guess which player scored Leverkusen's goal?
Yeah you know what time it is.
.@KeVolland to @CH14_ =
What a week it’s been for 20-year-old Hirving “Chucky” Lozano. First, the Mexican winger was included in Mexico’s 18-man squad for the Rio 2016 Olympics. Then, Pachuca’s rising star was linked with a massive transfer to Manchester United in the Premier League. Finally, Lozano began the 2016 Liga MX Apertura with two goals and an assist in Pachuca’s 5-1 demolition of Leon.
Digeo Simeone, the manager of Atletico Madrid, has summed up his coaching philosophy in one brief sentence: “Effort is non-negotiable.”
Simeone puts so much emphasis on the collective at Atletico that he's forbidden small, divided tables during meals, forcing his squad to sit at one vast table "face to face".
In many ways, the Copa America Centenario resembled an A-Plus B-movie; an event so bizarre that it couldn’t help but capture the imagination.
From Brazil’s decision to essentially forfeit before the matches had even kicked off, to the final drama of Lionel Messi retiring from international football after missing a decisive penalty kick, the 2016 Copa America was camp to the extreme — it had a certain self-acknowledged theatricality.
Mexico’s task in front of 80,000 plus supporters at the Rose Bowl had been clearly defined following Uruguay’s shock 1-0 defeat to Venezuela earlier in the day. Win and they advanced to the Copa America quarter-finals. Thanks to a powerful header from Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez and a neat finish from Oribe Peralta, Mexico have guaranteed their place in the Copa's knockout rounds.
Miguel Herrera's tenure at Club Tijuana has not gone to plan so far, but as usual "El Piojo" has found a way to capture our attention.
Club Tijuana finished 14th in the 2016 Clausura, and that, evidently, was not good enough for management. You hear of clubs needing offseason "overhauls" but we've never seen it taken quite this far: Tijuana have transfer-listed every single player on the roster.
Here's the full release on Club Tijuana's website:
Mexico have selected Guillermo Ochoa, Jesus Corona and Alfredo Talavera as their goalkeepers for the 2016 Copa America, a reliable group that has amassed 135 international appearances between them. Such is the strength of the position for Mexico that the highly underrated Jonathan Orozco was unable to make the squad.
However, the most promising and talented goalkeeper for El Tri might be the one lining up across from Orozco in the Liga MX Clausura semi-finals, Hugo Gonzalez.
The 23 players who will represent the Mexico National Team at the Copa America Centenario have been announced, and there were more than a few controversies. Here's the final roster (barring injury):
Goalkeepers:
—Memo Ochoa (Malaga)
—Jose Corona (Cruz Azul)
—Alfredo Talavera (Toluca)
Defenders
—Rafa Marquez (Atlas)
—Diego Reyes (Real Sociedad)
—Hector Moreno (PSV Eindhoven)
—Paul Aguilar (Club America)
—Miguel Layun (Porto)