Death and taxes are certain in life, and so seems head coach Javier Aguirre stepping in to save Mexico‘s men’s national team. If things looked a little too familiar during Thursday’s introductory press conference for Aguirre, it’s because this wasn’t the first time he’s been announced as El Tri’s leader on the sideline. Or even the second.
After previously being hired in two separate occasions to help Mexico qualify for the 2002 and 2010 World Cups, the veteran manager was called upon a third time when he was officially hired last week. Fourteen years after coaching what appeared to be his final game for the national team, Aguirre, beaming with a wide smile in an hour-long media event, found himself once again donning El Tri’s jacket.
“Any Mexican coach, you present them with this opportunity, they would say yes with their eyes closed,” said the 65-year-old.
Mexico’s new vision won’t be viewed through just the perspective of Aguirre either.
Sitting alongside him at the event, stoic as ever, was new assistant and El Tri legend Rafa Marquez. As previously reported by ESPN Mexico, Thursday’s press conference confirmed the long-term plan in which Aguirre would lead El Tri through the 2026 World Cup, and would then step aside to let Marquez coach the national team in the 2030 cycle.
Returning to a federation that often seems to have short-term perspectives in mind, Aguirre proudly backed the new blueprint.
“Today, more than ever, I see with joy that there’s a project that’s not only about rescuing three World Cup qualifiers,” said the coach. “There’s a project, there’s an important foundation, a project until 2030. I’m very excited, I’m very excited to see that things are being done well, to see that things are becoming more professional.”
“We are already thinking about six years from now, it’s fantastic. I can’t say no to my country, to my national team.”
And that national team is one that undoubtedly needs help.
Once seen as the undisputed Concacaf kings that were on the cusp of joining the upper echelon of the globe’s elite, Mexico now haven’t claimed a title in their three Nations League runs, they stumbled out of the group stage of the 2022 World Cup, they were unable to qualify for this summer’s Olympics, and in July, they cemented their third group stage exit in their last four Copa América appearances. It’s a dark period for Mexico after the dismal Copa that forced the departure of former coach Jaime “Jimmy” Lozano, but the good news for fans of El Tri: Aguirre has the know-how to pick up the pieces of the squad that remains in a slump.
The bad news? The harsh reality for the national team is that the days of once being ranked fourth in the world by FIFA (in 2006), are now long gone. While soccer continues to develop and grow across Concacaf and beyond, there needs to be a recognition by Mexico that it needs to improve its depth and also usher in a new generation of players.
It’s less of a wealth of talent and more of a work with what you have, which is exactly the scenario in which Aguirre was able to find recent success with Mallorca in Spain. After narrowly avoiding relegation in LaLiga‘s 2021-22 table, the Mexican coach pushed the modest squad up to ninth in 2022-23. Although they eventually dipped down to 15th in the 2023-24 season, Aguirre gained acclaim for a Cinderella run into the final of the Copa del Rey.
For a club that was ranked 17th in LaLiga’s 2023-24 season for xG and possession, it was astonishing to see them on the cusp of a national trophy after narrowly losing the Copa del Rey title on penalties against Athletic Club in April. In Aguirre, Mexico have someone that can make them greater than the sum of their parts.
