TORONTO — Mexico head coach Jesus Ramirez admits his team has been a little nervous during the early going of the group phase of the FIFA under-20 World Cup — but says it will continue to prove the more it plays.
"We started a bit wobbly and this is normal at the beginning of the World Cup," Ramirez said after Mexico won a showdown of Group C powers, 2-1 over Portugal last night.
"But bit by bit we will improve, we will adjust as we play more games, we will look better. It would be great to play a beautiful game, but the most important thing is to win."
The good news for Mexico is that there will be at least one more game after the group phase.
Portugal midfielder Bruno Pereirinha, left, and Mexico midfielder Cesar Villaluz battle for the ball. (Frank Gunn/CP)
Related Articles
Wobbly or not, Mexico has won its first two games and it will be advancing to the second round of the tournament after it completes its Group C schedule with a game against winless New Zealand.
After a goalless and relatively even first half before a crowd of 19,526 at BMO Field, Mexico scored on a penalty taken by Barcelona player Giovanni dos Santos in the 47th minute.
Mexico went ahead 2-0 in the 66th minute on a goal by Pablo Barrera, who had just come into the game as a substitute. Barrera's marker, scored on a pass from Julio Cesar Dominguez, came 10 minutes after Mexico had a goal disallowed.
The Mexican fans — in what was a spirited crowd — cheered lustily when the brilliant Dos Santos was removed from the game, sort of like a declaration of victory, in the 86th minute.
But it was not over. Portugal was quickly back in the game on a powerful left-footed free kick from Antunes in the 89th minute that made the score 2-1 and brought the large number of Portuguese rooters back into the game.
There was still four minutes of stoppage time to play after the regulation 90 minutes, but Ramirez said he was not concerned about Portugal drawing level.
"We basically handled the last few minutes of the match the way we planned," the coach said.
Mexico won its first game of the tournament on Monday, 3-0 over Gambia, which was a flattering result for the winners. Much of the credit for that belonged to goalkeeper Alfonso Blanco, who made at least two brilliant saves in the first half.
Blanco was at it again last night.
After Mexico just missed scoring a goal in the 71st minute, when a Portuguese defender cleared the ball off the line, Portugal came back on the attack. In the 76th minute, Blanco tipped a header from Guedes over the bar to preserve the two-goal lead.
About 16 minutes earlier, Guedes, who had just entered the game, put spectacular kick just over the bar.
Portugal head coach Jose Couceiro referred to it as "a good match with two teams of quality."
He said he wouldn't comment on the penalty call which resulted in Dos Santos's goal.
"We can win the match," Couceiro said. "[Whoever] scores the first goal has an advantage. They scored first and it was very difficult for us.
"In the first half, we had some chances to score. In the second half, Mexico scored [early] and after that the match was different."
Ramirez said there was a concern for him in last night's game: the five yellow cards picked up by Mexico to Portugal's three.
He said it might enter into his decision about how he sets up his team for following matches. But the good things for him is that he knows there is more than one more match for his team.
Portugal should advance, too, but first it must deal with pesky Gambia, which defeated New Zealand 1-0 yesterday in the early game at BMO Field before a much more subdued crowd.
Gambia gave Mexico as much as it could handle for that one half and could make Portugal nervous as well.
