The Rise and Fall of the Gold-Medal Winning Mexico National Team

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: September 26, 2013

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The Mexican football team made history on August 11, 2012. Luis Fernando Tena put up a U-23 squad full of talented players who participated in the Summer Olympics.

The Olympic tournament has never been easy on El Tri. In Barcelona in 1992 and Greece in 2004, they did not qualify to go to the knockout stage, and in Atlanta in 1996, they were eliminated in the quarterfinals.

But London was different. Mexico did not lose once and proved to have the guts and talent to overcome adversity. It had nothing to do with luck.

 

The beginning

Tena's first rehearsal came in the 2011 Copa America. Mexico played with the U-23 team because the senior squad was playing in the Gold Cup in the United States.

It was the perfect opportunity to try new players, but this became an issue when eight of them were suspended before the first match because they were spotted with girls in their hotel rooms.

The team left the tournament soon. A disastrous 0-0-3 record, plus one goal for and four against, meant Mexico’s worst participation in the tournament.

Three months later, Guadalajara hosted the Pan American Games. The U-23 played at home and eventually won the gold medal, the first one since Winnipeg in 1999.

The team was better than it had been in a long time, and 2012 promised to bring even more success.

 

Back to winning ways

Mexico got to the 2012 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament as the favorite, and the players did not disappoint.



El Tri defeated Trinidad and Tobago 7-1, Honduras 3-0 and Panama 1-0, and were the only undefeated squad in the competition.

In the semifinals, Mexico eliminated Canada 3-1 and overcame Honduras in the final match 2-1, with a goal at the 116th minute by Miguel Ponce.

This tournament also meant redemption for Marco Fabian. The Chivas midfielder...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - International Football

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