“It was to see other players, give rest [to some starters], also being careful with some of the [yellow] cards we had,” Lozano said postmatch about his changes. Following two games in a row with the same lineup, Lozano brought on Santiago Gimenez, Ozziel Herrera, Carlos Rodriguez, Gerardo Arteaga, Israel Reyes and Julian Araujo.
And to be fair to Lozano, it wasn’t as if his alterations failed to create chances in the final third for Mexico.
While Qatar needed just one shot to score that arrived from a defensive error from El Tri, Lozano’s players racked up a total of 25 efforts on goal with an xG of 2.27. As for Qatar, they earned a tally of only 0.05 yet won the match.
Mexico 0-1 Qatar
Mexico xG: 2.27
Qatar xG: 0.05#ElTriEng pic.twitter.com/8anYhpznZA— Cesar Hernandez (@cesarhfutbol) July 3, 2023
“There were very, very clear opportunities, from Santi [Gimenez], from Edson [Alvarez], also not sure if it was Diego [Lainez] or someone else there. I think there are five, six very, very clear opportunities, which I’m sure that in any other game would have gone in, and today in the end, we ended up taking a defeat,” Lozano said.
The players should earn some of the blame for the loss. Lozano, whether it be through his 4-3-3 setup or his desperate second-half changes that literally threw on every midfield and forward option from the bench onto the pitch, did everything in his power to push his players to get at least an equalizer. Even with that leading to an eye-catching total of 19 shots from within Qatar’s 18-yard box, not one El Tri player was able to find the back of the net.
Defensively, on the lone goal allowed, Mexico’s backline was a mess in the 27th-minute gift to Qatar. With two central defenders, Alvarez and Reyes, out of position, Qatar easily roamed into the final third after intercepting a ball from Alvarez. Right-back Araujo then had two players to mark on a cross that he awkwardly backed away from, leaving Hazem Shehata with a golden chance to connect with the ball off a header. Goalkeeper and captain Guillermo Ochoa, not having the speed he once had in his younger days, then wasn’t quick enough to keep it out.
“That goal, surely in a club [situation], wouldn’t have happened,” Lozano said. “These defensive questions and of the defensive area are very workable, it’s something that we focus a lot on as coaching staff.”
And yet, it’s Lozano himself who decided to take these risks. It’s understandable to want to mix things up after already claiming a spot in the knockout rounds, effectively as group winners due to their goal difference, but there’s no real room for experimentation when you were just given the job on the week that the Gold Cup started.
For the pessimists and skeptics out there, there’s also an argument to be made for sticking with the best XI possible through the tournament and gaining whatever cohesion you can along the way. As unfair as it is for Lozano, the expectation and hopes from those in charge at the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) will be the Gold Cup title. No matter the limited time to prepare with their new coach, El Tri should be the favorites when you consider that fellow title-contenders Canada and the United States sent “B” teams to the tournament.
