'He is making history' – Javier Aguirre on handing 16-year-old Gilberto Mora his Mexico debut

Javier Aguirre evaluated Mexico’s 2-0 victory over Saudi Arabia in the Gold Cup quarterfinals, where they now face Honduras for a spot in the final. Aguirre continues to rotate players and praised their performances.

“They deserved to play. Gilberto Mora and Julián Araujo are two players who earned their spot in training,” said Aguirre during the press conference.

“He is making history. Mora has a great mentality, he is a valuable asset for us. He’s well-mannered, respectful, and eager to learn. He passed the test in his debut,” Aguirre added about Mora, who became the youngest player ever to represent El Tri at 16 years and 257 days old.

With this win, “El Vasco” reached 27 victories as Mexico’s head coach in official matches, surpassing Ricardo LaVolpe’s 26, making him the coach with the most wins in the team's history.

“A very controlled match. In the first half, we had a few chances we couldn’t finish, but in the second half, we had a lot of possession. I was fortunate to score. The game against Honduras will be very tough, but we’ll give it our all, and God willing, on Wednesday we’ll be moving on to another final,” said Alexis Vega after the match against Saudi Arabia, where he scored Mexico’s opening goal.

Mora became the youngest player ever to debut for Mexico in an official match and he acknowledged he was confident his time would come before the moment.

“Honestly, I’ve been enjoying every training session. I knew the opportunity would come eventually, and I think I had a good game," he said. "My teammates gave me a lot of confidence. Edson Álvarez especially told me to just do what I know how to do."

Mora currently plays for Liga MX side Tijuana, where he's made 26 league appearances - scoring two goals.

Mexico will face Honduras next Wednesday, July 2, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., in the semifinals of the Gold Cup. The match will determine one of the finalists of the tournament. Following their victory over Saudi Arabia, Javier Aguirre’s team is scheduled to travel on Sunday to begin preparations for the clash against Los Catrachos.