Men's National Teams

Mexico and Uruguay were tied 1-1 in a hard-fought Copa America group stage game Wednesday when 37-year-old Mexico captain Rafa Marquez put his stamp on the match and removed all doubt as to the merits of putting an old creaky person in the starting lineup of a major international match.

Marquez, who once partnered Carles Puyol on Barcelona's back line, was upfield for a Mexico corner when he received a pass near the corner of the six-yard box and hammered the winning goal into the net. This is not the sort of behavior we expected from Marquez.

The United States were punished 2-0 by Colombia on Friday night to open the 2016 Copa America Centenario. A heavily pro-Colombian crowd in Santa Clara, California, watched as Geoff Cameron carelessly allowed Cristian Zapata to put his side ahead early before James Rodriguez capitalized from the spot on a sophomoric handball from DeAndre Yedlin.

The USMNT face Colombia in the first match of the Copa America Centenario tonight, and they will have to put on a strong showing in order to get anything from the match. They have a potentially tough group that includes World Cup quarter-finalists Costa Rica and last year's fourth place Copa finishers, Paraguay. It is important for the U.S. to start strong in the hopes of grabbing what could be three vital points. 

Most didn’t want him there. A good deal still doesn’t agree with his work ethic. And yet, Mexican fans should be more than happy to have a manager like Juan Carlos Osorio at the helm of their national team. 

Osorio brings something many American (North, South, and Central) squads aren’t used to seeing from their national team managers: the blunt truth. 

The Colombian manager recently commented, saying he dreams of coaching Colombia’s national team. 

Javier Hernandez celebrated his birthday in fine style on Wednesday, netting the winning goal for Mexico against Chile in their final warm-up game before the Copa America Centenario.

With the scores level at 0-0, Hernandez, who turned 28 on the day, entered the match in the 78th minute. It took him all of eight minutes to snatch the victory for El Tri, his powerful header giving Chile’s goalkeeper, Cristopher Toselli, absolutely no chance.

Mexico international Hector Herrera could be on his way to Napoli, if reports from Calciomercato are to be believed. The midfielder, who currently plays for Porto in the Portuguese Primeira Liga, has reportedly agreed to personal terms with the Vesuviani and the deal currently hinges on whether the two clubs can reach an agreement on price. 

The United States kicks off the Copa America Centenario on Friday against the world’s fourth ranked team, Colombia. For Jurgen Klinsmann and the US, the match is similar to their World Cup opener against Ghana two years ago. In a difficult group containing Colombia, Costa Rica and Paraguay, the USA needs a positive result if they are to harbor any hope of advancing to the quarterfinals.

The U-23 Mexico youth national team endured a disappointing campaign in the Toulon World Youth Festival as they slumped to a fourth-placed finish behind Mali, Czech Republic and group winners, France. They managed a solitary win against bottom of the table Bulgaria, but their overall performance does not inspire hope for the upcoming Olympics in Rio this summer. 

Jurgen Klinsmann’s record and accomplishments with the United States national team are well known. After winning the CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2013, his fortunes have gradually taken a turn for the worse. The 2016 Copa America represents a massive chance for Klinsmann and the US squad to make the country proud again, but of the highest importance is the continued buildup to the 2018 World Cup in Russia.