After failing to qualify for final yr’s World Cup and the 2024 Olympics, ladies’s soccer in Mexico was in disarray.
Changes have been made, and the outcomes have adopted.
Mexico stunned the United States 2-0 in the Gold Cup and the staff appears to be on the fitting observe in their need to be a world contender.
It was solely their second win in 42 matches towards the four-time world champions.
Mexico’s essential sports activities newspapers devoted widespread protection to the staff, whereas ESPN Mexico devoted a complete present to debate Monday’s group-stage victory.
Back in July 2022, it was the other. The staff fell quick for Olympic qualification after failing to land a World Cup spot.
The Mexican soccer federation fired coach Monica Vergara and director of nationwide groups Gerardo Torrado.
Spaniard Pedro Lopez was appointed a few months later as the brand new coach after main Spain to the U-20 ladies’s World Cup title.
“We have the means, the resources, the facilities and the talent to put the team where it belongs,” Lopez had stated in his first press convention. “Mexico does not want to be just a regular team. We have the potential to be a world contender.”
Lopez had a degree.
Mexico began a ladies’s skilled league in 2016 and yearly it has been rising and gathering curiosity from followers and massive sponsors like Nike.
“Not only CONCACAF, but the whole world is continuing to raise its level,” U.S. ahead Alex Morgan stated after dropping to the Mexicans. “It’s helping with all the leagues around the world and Mexico is definitely a product of that with their league.”
[Related: USWNT fought to elevate soccer worldwide, now the competition is much tougher]
For the Apertura 2022 closing between America and Tigres, 52,654 followers attended to set a brand new league report and it grew to become the sixth largest attendance for a ladies’s soccer match in historical past. Barcelona towards Wolfsburg tops the listing with 91,648 — a report set in the Women’s Champions League semifinal in 2022.
“The league’s growth has been huge in just six years, we are one of the top eight leagues in the world as far as salaries and infrastructure,” league president Mariana Gutiérrez stated. “We are not where we want to be yet, but we are doing good.”
Lopez took benefit of the Liga MX Femenil to construct a aggressive roster and the staff confirmed progress final yr — profitable the gold medal at Central American and Caribbean Games in San Salvador after which on the Pan American Games in Santiago.
“This is something that we have been working on, we’ve been a year and half with Pedro Lopez and you can see the difference with the team,” stated Maria Sanchez, a midfielder who performs for the Houston Dash in the NWSL. “The change with Pedro is evident. We celebrate the win, but we want this to be for the long run.”
For the Gold Cup, Lopez additionally made some daring strikes slicing common gamers like Kenti Robles, Alicia Cervantes and Katty Martinez and as an alternative going with extra inexperienced ones like Ovalle or Mayra Pelayo, who scored towards the U.S.
He additionally introduced again veteran Charlyn Corral, a former scoring champion in Spain who has supplied management in the locker room.
“It was a hard decision, but in the end, we made a decision based on our rival and what we think and the pieces that we choose fit in what we think we are gong to face,” Lopez stated.
Mexico completed atop Group A in the Gold Cup whereas the United States completed second. Both groups superior to the knockout spherical.
Mexico now waits to study its subsequent opponent.
Even although Lopez has been residing in the nation for lower than two years, he’s conscious that the victory over the U.S. would imply much less if the staff will get eradicated in its subsequent recreation.
“Mexico is a country of great emotions, and I don’t want this to be something sporadic, I want Mexico to be a reality and to be respected worldwide in women’s soccer,” Lopez stated. “So far we have made some new fans in Mexico, and that’s pretty good for women’s soccer.”
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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