Looking Up at the Team from the South

"They're as dynamic as any Mexican team I've played against."

- Landon Donovan, after Saturday's 4-2 loss

For the past decade, the US dominated Mexico on home soil. Despite Mexico's technical superiority, the yanks always found a way to win. During the last World Cup qualifying cycle, the Mexican team seemed in disarray. It was February 2009. The Swede Sven Goran Ericsson brought his Mexico squad to Columbus, Ohio, for the opening game in the World Cup Qualifying Hex.

There were definite rumblings that Ericsson was not a great fit for the Mexican team. He employed a more structured formation, and the Mexican players did their best to accommodate him. The results were dreadful. Despite a newfound dedication to defense and organization, the Mexican players seemed handcuffed. They lost 2-0.

Mexico next held serve on their home court with a 2-0 win over Costa Rica. But, a few days later, Honduras destroyed Mexico 3-1. Sven Goran Ericsson received his walking papers the next day. In the wake of the firing, the Mexican team opted for former manager Javier Aguirre. Aguirre knew the Mexican players flourished in a more flowing, attacking environment. He freed up the players. Yet, the team did not respond immediately. In the next qualifying game, El Salvador shocked the giants of CONCACAF with a 2-1 win. Mexico stood at the very bottom of the Hex with an unheard-of 1 win and 3 losses.

This was the lowest point for Mexican soccer in perhaps 50 years... more than the immediate aftermath of their 2-0 loss to the US in the 2002 World Cup knockout stage. That loss surely hurt to the core. But the Mexican team and fans at least knew the team was good enough to make it to the knockout stage in the grandest tournament in the world. Staring up at El Salvador and Costa Rica and... the US!... in the standings was a dagger to their pride.

So, on the heels of the loss to El Salvador, what did the Mexican team do? It was the Summer of '09. They jettisoned some of the older guard (Cuatemoc Blanco) and built the team around the burgeoning youth like Giovanni Dos Santos.

"Gio" was part of a new generation of Mexican players plying their trade overseas. For as long as I can remember, the Mexican team featured stars of the Mexican domestic league. Despite their stylish skill on the ball, few Mexican players ever ventured overseas. Jared Borgetti was the perfect example. Borgetti is Mexico's all-time leading scorer for the national team (an impressive 46 goals). An outright star in the Mexican domestic league, Borgetti signed with Bolton in 2005. In 19 appearances, Borgetti managed just 2 goals. He returned to Mexico in 2006.

But Rafael Marquez was the exception. At age 20, the strong Mexican defender signed with Monaco back in 1999. In a few years, he was the captain at Barcelona, where he stayed for eight seasons. With such a successful run in Spain, it's no surprise that European clubs, especially those in Spain, started viewing Mexican talent in a different light.

Gio landed a contract with Barcelona. Andres Gardado signed with Racing Santander. Hector Moreno went to play in the Netherlands. This past season, Javier Hernandez, aka "Chicharito," signed with Manchester United and scored a whopping 20 goals.

This is the new Mexico.

Now, let's go back to the Summer of '09. While the US made waves in the Confederation Cup by losing unceremoniously to Brazil and Italy, only to somehow destroy Egypt and shock Spain, the Mexican team blew through the Gold Cup. Few American fans really cared about that Gold Cup. Unlike this year, the Gold Cup winner in 2009 received no invite to the Confed Cup. The tournament was held just for exhibition purposes. Still, Mexico saw an opportunity. They trotted out more new blood, and the team steamrolled the competition, including a 5-0 thrashing of the US in the Gold Cup final. Mexico was back.

The good feelings continued as they rallied back in World Cup Qualifying. They beat the US 2-1 in Azteca. They won five straight games in qualifying, easily earning the trip to South America for World Cup 2010.

It wasn't a World Cup to remember, though. They finished second in their group, but drew Argentina in the knockout round. Argentina thrashed them 3-1. Still, the tourney provided valuable experience for kids like Chichirito, who scored two goals which obviously caught the attention of Man U. The Mexican players started to thrive overseas. Their American counterparts had less success. Only Clint Dempsey and Stuart Holden stood tall at their European clubs. American up-and-comers like Jozy Altidore shifted from club to club hoping to earn playing time. The same was true with Michael Bradley, Oguchi Onyewu, and especially Freddy Adu.

Now, I don't want it to sound like the world was aces for the Mexicans and Hell for the yanks. Gio Dos Santos experienced his share of disappointment too. He couldn't get any minutes at Barcelona, so he signed with Spurs. While he's a regular in the 18-man roster, he rarely starts. Still, there's absolutely no doubt that the top European club competition has proven beneficial to the Mexican national team. Donovan's quote up top says it all. The Mexican team shredded a rather decent US squad. As much as I want to criticize the Yanks, they're not horrible. I knew they were a step down from previous years, perhaps due to an emotional come-down following the draining 2010 World Cup run. But this team, despite fielding almost the same lineup, is not nearly as good as the team who finished atop their group in South Africa. That team had its own problems (conceding early goals), but they were significantly more energized, organized, and creative. Mexico's dominant 4-2 win last weekend should say more about the state of the Mexican team than the American's.

This miraculous rebound in glory came in a short two year span. Can the yanks do the same? I doubt it. Americans don't have the same passion or resources for soccer. It's the culture. That won't change. The American system may produce a Clint Dempsey or Jozy Altidore every now and then, but they need to produce TEN Jozy Altidores. TEN Donovans. TEN Tim Howards. That's how this team will improve.

Until then, we're stuck with this current incarnation. With Bob Bradley as coach. Yippee.