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It has to be said, it really does because I have been keeping this to myself but after yesterday’s performance there is absolutely no way that the Federation could miss the multiple flaws with the Mexican Selection. This is not about Eriksson, it is, as I have always said, beyond that. It is about a team so full of themselves for exporting play to Europe that they can not all fit together in the pitch given their overinflated heads. Yes, Rafa is a crucial player in Barca; yes, Salcido is important to PSV; Carlos Vela is my favorite player in arsenal for obvious reasons and yes, he is that good. That can be said about every player that has been exported to Europe but failure to recognize that at home has put them at odds with each other and…NEWS FLASH! There are other teams they really should be worried about. This is their opportunity to get into the World Cup and they are wasting it.

Let us climb from that minimalistic hill that was the victory over Costa Rica. It was three points, yes, but not a worthy three points. That second goal, the penalty, was as much a penalty as last night’s goal; which is to say it wasn’t. This is how we are getting our points, with favors from inept refs! The Giant of the CONCACAF my ass. How long now have they relied on this name? How long do they expect it to carry them? Is the fact that they merely made it out of round play by goal differential not a red flag being waved directly in their face or are they that blind? And no, making a “trenecito” after scoring does not mean the team is put together again.

Last night’s (4/1/09) game against Honduras was beyond shameful, it presents to the world exactly how low the selection has fallen. They have proven time and again their absolute inability to win as a visitor, their lack of focus, their broken down defense, their lagging midfield, the lack of creativity (or intelligence) on the front; the absolute lack of discipline, heart, and will! What does it say when Honduras, the bottom team (as of kick off) in the hexagonal dominates you in this fashion?

No, no, no. This has gone beyond the coaching, this is a team that needs to be rebooted, disintegrated and put under leadership not afraid to kick these bastards on the neck and show them that on the pitch they are all equal, they are all a team and they are playing for the pride of their nation. Scoliari? Doubt it, I have been saying since he left Chelsea that he might be a good fit for the team, but the money required to bring him down would probably be more than the Federation would be willing to shell out. Aguirre? Perhaps, but he is seriously going to have to go militaristic on their asses because there are egos that need to be squashed and NOW! La Volpe again? My dad brought this one up on a conversation we had this morning along with my brother (by the way, everybody say happy birthday to my pops!) and that might just be the key; as Ricardo says, La Volpe is one of those coaches whose ego is greater than the team and that might just be what puts each player in their place.

But let us be honest, this game is the blue print. This game is the scheme that every team now can look at and know, step by step how to win against Mexico. They laid it out there shamelessly. They put it all in writing, they showed every single flaw you could have and then went above and beyond to show that they could not summon up the will or creativity needed to take advantage of their opposing squads own flaws. How in the **** do you not manage to score goals against a goalie with an injured inner thigh muscle (or groin, who knows, the fact is the poor guy was limping), or against a team as slow, as Honduras…or as disarrayed and tired as they were in the second half? Look…nothing against Honduras, but they are not a Class A team and that is me being frank. They are not. But they showed the heart and perseverance to get it done and both Costly and Pavón proved that a bit of focus and some experience goes a long way against any squad. Which….brings us to Memo Ochoa.

I will be honest, I was in the band wagon to put this pretty-boy good for nothing Americanista on the box, mostly because I had gotten tired of Sanchez’ attitude (yet another ego that needed some flattening), but the game against Costa Rica was not a good test for him, the Ticos played like somebody slipped x-lax on their drinks. No, this was the test and out of four shots he managed to save one. The first goal went between his legs!!!!!! The fact of the matter is that this kid freezes in the world stage, he does! He can not keep his composure and in my opinion he is not and should not be a titular. So, the question is…now what? Bring out Michel? I would like to see this, personally. Luis Ernesto, in my opinion is underrated. My brother suggests Corona as well, and in all honesty either of these two I think would be able to prove a massive improvement. But once again we get into this issue. Will changing the goalie make it better?

No, it will not, not any more than changing the coach alone will. It is time to push the reset button on this team and go back to one. It is time to disintegrate the entire selection and pick the good players that may not be stars abroad but that are willing to take direction and play with each other as a team, not trying to outshine each other. Vela, Bravo, Guardado, Osorio were completely missing from this game, they were there, on the pitch, standing around picking their noses. They attacked three quarters of the way and then scratched their heads with senility on the last quarter, trying to figure out what the hell they had just started. Without exception it seemed that every run up the sides ended in a break and every run in the middle had them smacking stupidly into a very solid “pared Hondureña”. They are playing with blinders! They are playing stupid. Hell, you can say they are not even playing. Even Pavel Pardo failed to make a showing of himself, it seemed Magallón was the only one that was aware that a lot of crap is on the line in this games. And what of the games that showed a little too much? Shall we speak of Nery, who is not even a minute into the game and starting ‘broncas’? Unable to keep his mouth shut, shouting at everybody, wanting to show his leadership and proving to be little more than a bully with a thorn on his side? This man needs to be simply taken out. I do not care how good he might be, his attitude is the very poison that is killing the selection right now and not the captain, nor the ref, nor the coach can keep him online. And then there is Salcido…with his red card…

It’s bad…it is bad enough that I can honestly say I am entirely ashamed to be a fan of this team and to be glad a game like this finally happened to hopefully open the eyes of the people in charge and get the right moves started. Will it happen? Well see, but I am not holding my breath and I am bracing myself to seeing Mexico fail to make top four and end up watching the World Cup on the TV instead of being in it.

-Fco.