Tri Players Not Surprised To Face United States In Final

Mexican national team players are not surprised that upon reaching the final the United States awaits.

Jul 25, 2009 7:12:01 PM

More On :  Mexico
Israel Castro - Maynor Davila - Mexico-Guatemala (Mexsport)
The rivalry between Mexico and the United States will be revived once more on Sunday as both teams battle for regional supremacy in the final of the Gold Cup 2009 at Giants Stadium in New York. Mexico made it to the finals by beating Costa Rica in penalties, while the US became the first finalist with a 2-0 win against Honduras.  
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To the Mexican players, going up against the United States in a final was something to be expected.  

“The opponent is the United States. We have to analyze and evaluate them to do things right. It’s true, people are excited about the rival," Israel Castro told Mexican media. "We have to take advantage of that because there is history coming into this clash. There’s history for people as well as the media. We’ll take advantage of whatever comes up."

Castro said the game is important on two levels: it is Mexico's chance to win a Gold Cup for the first time in six years, and El Tri could do so against their biggest rivals.

“We’re excited, and we’re very motivated. Everyone has the idea that we’ll lift the cup on Sunday," Castro said. "We have the will to win. We’ll always look to create, to go up front. We’ll look to score and win. That is Mexico.”


Johnny Magallon says that the team is focused on the final and not so much on the upcoming World Cup qualifying game on Aug. 12.  

“We’re thinking about taking the cup home. It’ll be very complicated because we’re going up against a great rival. We’ll play a good game," Magallon said. "Then the qualifying will come and we’ll be asked to give more, but as professionals we know that we can give a little more. The idea is to work to improve.”

The teams know each other well, and although the US is strong on set pieces Magallon thinks that the Mexican national team will be able to overcome that aspect of the game.

“We can’t make silly mistakes, we have to be focused. On set pieces, we’re fine. It was only against Panama where we were scored on like that. It doesn’t worry us too much," said Magallon, only one of two players to score against the U.S. on American soil this decade. "It’s one of the United States’ weapons, but we can over come it.”  

The Mexican defender is expecting to win the final game.

“We’re thinking about winning the final. Anything can happen, but we’re thinking in doing everything right, and hopefully the balance tips in our favor," Magallon said. "We’re thinking about taking the cup back home. We know that we have a great rival in front, and they’re in their country, but we also have great support and we hope to please the fans. We’re happy with the effort we’ve given.”

Andrea Martinez, Goal.com

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