Bellingham brings Mexico back down to earth

“If Mexico had to go down, they were going to go down fighting.” The words of forward Guillermo Martínez perfectly sum up what unfolded at a packed Azteca Stadium with a crowd devoted to the Tri, convinced that they could continue their run in their World Cup. The “what if?” filled the atmosphere with hope against an England team wary after the eliminations of Germany and Brazil.

And yes, Mexico fell to a relentless England team that struck gold with two consecutive strikes by Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham in the first half. Two direct blows to the Aztec jaw that, however, did not knock out Javier Aguirre’s team, which stayed in the fight until the final whistle. Standing tall to the end.

The 87,500 people packing the stands didn’t let even the bad weather dampen their spirits, as the event had to be delayed by an hour due to the risk of thunderstorms near the Azteca Stadium. However, the lightning shifted to the field, in a thrilling and intense match full of scoring opportunities.

Musical showdown in the stands: Juan Gabriel vs. Oasis

To liven up the wait, fans enjoyed a musical showdown in the stands, spurred on by the public address system: the popular Mexican songs “Cómo te voy a olvidar” by Los Ángeles Azules; “Hasta que te conocí” by Juan Gabriel, and “Triste canción” by El Tri versus “Don’t look back in anger” by Oasis; “Song 2” by Blur and “Don’t stop me now” by Queen.

The match began, and as soon as Mexico put together a string of passes, they were rewarded with “olés” from their fans, who also let out the customary controversial chant every time goalkeeper Jordan Pickford made a save. With that support filling the massive Azteca Stadium to the brim, Mexico created the first scoring opportunity.

In the 15th minute, Jiménez connected on a header from the corner, forcing Pickford to make a save and a slap, the goalkeeper against whom he has scored the most goals in the Premier League. Around the half-hour mark, El Tri had England pinned back in their own half, but England nevertheless found a gap in the green wall.

Two strikes by the “Three Lions” in back-to-back minutes

Bukayo Saka broke down the right flank and sent in a cross that Bellingham converted into the 1-0 lead in the 36th minute with a beautiful bicycle kick. The Mexican team’s unbeaten streak ended at 396 minutes. Before they could even process the goal, the Real Madrid player himself found the back of the net again to make it 2-0 in the 38th minute, a lead that seemed decisive.

However, the shock spurred the crowd into action, and they began chanting “Sí se puede.” That message resonated with the players and inspired Quiñones to pull one back just four minutes later by capitalizing on a rebound off Ezri Konsa.

Hope grew even more when England’s prospects dimmed in the 54th minute due to the ejection of right back Jarell Quansah for a sliding tackle on Jesús Gallardo. However, Mexico was unable to capitalize on its numerical advantage.

Fighting until the end

Goalkeeper Raúl Rangel committed a penalty on Anthony Gordon. Kane converted the penalty in the 60th minute to make it 3-1, his sixth goal of the tournament, keeping him in the running for the top scorer title, which is currently led by Messi, Haaland, and Mbappé, each with one more goal.

Kane himself set up the 3-2 goal for El Tri with a foul in the box he committed on Brian Rodríguez. Jiménez, a penalty specialist, beat Pickford in the 69th minute.

Mexico’s elimination was sealed on one of the most memorable nights at Azteca Stadium. As Martínez said, Mexico went down fighting.