Mexico Still Searching for Answers in Serbia Friendly | OneFootball

The World Cup is finally back in Mexico, and the national team will face Serbia in its final tune-up before opening the tournament against South Africa on June 11.

The Last Dress Rehearsal

For Javier Aguirre, this is supposed to be the last dress rehearsal. The time for experiments, endless rotations and tactical soul-searching should be over. Thursday night’s match at Estadio Nemesio Díez in Toluca is meant to answer the one question every host nation wants resolved before kickoff: who are the best eleven players to start a World Cup?

The problem is that, with just one week to go, Mexico still seems to be searching for those answers.

Aguirre’s lineup against Australia over the weekend looked more like a preseason exercise than a final World Cup test. The veteran coach made eleven changes and, despite grinding out a 1-0 victory, El Tri once again left supporters with mixed feelings. The result was acceptable; the performance, less so.

Aguirre Under Fire

One of the recurring criticisms aimed at Aguirre since naming his final 26-man squad is the roster construction itself. Mexico brought seven forwards and only six defenders, including just three natural center-backs. Yet somehow, despite all that attacking firepower on paper, goals remain surprisingly difficult to find.

Adding to the uncertainty, reports suggest that defender César Montes, captain Edson Álvarez, midfielder Luis Chávez and winger Alexis Vega are not yet fully fit and have been unable to train normally with the squad. Not exactly the ideal situation when the World Cup is only days away.

As if injuries were not enough, the goalkeeper debate refuses to disappear. Aguirre reportedly remains undecided between Raúl Rangel and Guillermo Ochoa for the opening match. One represents the future; the other is preparing for what would be a remarkable sixth World Cup appearance. Few countries enter a World Cup still debating their starting goalkeeper. Mexico, apparently, enjoys keeping things interesting.

Projected Mexico XI

Serbia Looking for Redemption

Serbia lands in Mexico after suffering a humbling 3-0 defeat to Cape Verde, hardly the confidence boost Veljko Paunović would have wanted before facing El Tri.

The Serbian manager is well known to Mexican fans. After leading Chivas to a Liga MX final, he enjoyed a brief spell with Tigres before returning to Europe with Real Oviedo. Following his departure from the Spanish club, he accepted the challenge of managing his home country’s national team, a position he is expected to hold through 2030 despite not qualifying for the World Cup this year.

Mexico vs Serbia: A Very Short History

Thursday’s match will be only the second meeting ever between the two nations.

Their first encounter took place in November 2011, when Mexico defeated Serbia 2-0 thanks to goals from Giovani dos Santos and Javier “Chicharito” Hernández.

History, of course, favors Mexico. Current form, however, is offering fewer guarantees.

The good news for Mexico is that there is still one final opportunity to convince the fans before the World Cup begins. The bad news is that the countdown clock keeps moving, whether the doubts disappear or not.

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