MEXICO CITY — To be fair to new Mexico manager Diego Cocca, he did say there would be some initial problems. After Sunday’s 2-2 draw at home to Jamaica, his words ring true.
During a pre-game news conference ahead of the CONCACAF Nations League match, Cocca had this to say about the early days of his new job: “We’re going to make mistakes, without a doubt. There’s no chance that everything will work out with three to four days of training, with three to four days of us being together, but what I do want to see is an iron conviction.”
In front of more than 65,000 supporters at the Estadio Azteca, Cocca probably didn’t think that things would go quite this badly. In his second game in charge and in his first match at home in the Mexico City venue, El Tri limped their way to a draw that narrowly qualified them for the knockout rounds.
Even before the first kick of a game that was temporarily paused due to thunderstorms, the energy was already tense and charged with scattered boos that were pointed at Cocca during the roster announcements. Why? Just days after earning a 2-0 away win over Suriname in his debut, fans remained frustrated that he wasn’t able to provide a classic gana, gusta y golea (roughly translated to “win, entertain and score plenty”) result against the minnows.
