Mexico chase another slice of World Cup history as England return to the Azteca
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MEXICO CITY, July 3 : Mexico will bid to continue their remarkable World Cup run when they face England in the last 16 on Sunday, with Javier Aguirre’s side standing one victory away from a first quarter-final appearance in 40 years.
The co-hosts have emerged as one of the tournament’s surprise packages, winning all four matches without conceding a goal – a feat achieved previously by only two teams at a World Cup after four games, Brazil in 1986 and Italy in 1990.
A commanding 2-0 win over Ecuador at the Azteca Stadium delivered Mexico’s first World Cup knockout triumph since 1986, with a scintillating first-half display many local observers hailed as one of the finest in the national team’s history.
Standing in Mexico’s way are England, who survived a scare against DR Congo thanks to Harry Kane’s late double in a 2-1 comeback victory after Thomas Tuchel’s side fell behind. They head to the Azteca with little time to prepare for Mexico City’s 2,200-metre (7,220-foot) altitude, a factor Tuchel has acknowledged gives the co-hosts a significant advantage.
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AZTECA TEST
Mexico, by contrast, have been based in the capital throughout the tournament and have played three of their four matches at the Azteca, where a raucous home crowd transformed the stadium into a cauldron during the victory over Ecuador.
Sunday’s match will also be the last World Cup fixture at the iconic venue before the tournament moves to the United States.
England have not played a competitive match at the Azteca since their 2-1 quarter-final defeat by eventual champions Argentina in 1986, when Diego Maradona produced both the infamous “Hand of God” goal and his dazzling solo effort later dubbed the “Goal of the Century”.
STOPPING KANE
If England must overcome the Azteca, Mexico face the daunting task of containing England talisman Harry Kane. The Bayern Munich striker’s two goals against DR Congo took his tournament tally to five and his World Cup total to 13, surpassing Pele and extending his record as England’s leading scorer in the tournament.
Kane has scored 72 goals for club and country this season, a tally bettered only by Lionel Messi’s 82 in the 2011-12 campaign for Barcelona and Argentina.
For Aguirre, who played in Mexico’s 1-0 friendly victory over England at the Azteca in 1985, the stakes are equally high.
Forty years after Mexico last reached the World Cup quarter-finals on home soil, he now has the chance to guide a new generation back to the last eight, with Brazil or Norway awaiting the winners in Miami.
Source: Reuters
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