A Goodbye to the Mexican (Or Almost)
It seems that our beloved Mexican U-17 Team is about to pack its bags more prematurely than a tourist who discovers that the all-inclusive resort does not include fun. Their adventure in the World Cup of the category hangs by such a thin thread that it is more likely to find a unicorn in the Azteca Stadium than to see them advance. But, hey, in football and in melodramas, there is always a tenuous and dramatic last-minute hope.
The national team faced Switzerland in the U-17 World Cup with the urgent need to win. It was not an option, it was an existential mandate. The result? A resounding 3-1 scoreline against them that left the fans wondering if they were watching a football match or a tutorial on how to dismantle a country’s illusions in 90 minutes. With this defeat, the classification of the tricolor team has become an exercise in faith and complex mathematics that would make a quantum physicist sweat.
The Agony Calculated: The Via Crucis of Classification
For this edition of the World Cup tournament, they decided to invite half the planet, bringing together 48 nations. They were divided into 12 groups, where the first two of each classify and, just in case, the eight best third parties also sneak in. A kind of “comfort” so that no one feels too bad… at least not immediately.
Our hero, the Mexican team, lies on the canvas with three measly units and a goal difference of -2. His situation is so precarious that he clings to the possibility of being one of those lucky third parties with the same strength with which a castaway clings to an inflatable life preserver… with a small hole in it. The mission, although technically possible, seems as complicated as asking a full stadium to be punctual.
The immediate future of the national squad now depends on the outcome of the other four pending groups. While the coaching staff and players probably light candles and pray to all the football saints, the harsh reality is that there are already three teams with their three points and a more favorable goal difference. To make matters worse, this same Monday, combined as Egypt, North Korea, Morocco, Indonesia and Tunisia also finished third in their sectors, but with noticeably sunnier outlooks than ours. Come on, Mexican hope not only hangs by a thread, but the thread is being held by someone with very bad tempers.
It’s the moment of truth, where an entire country will cross its fingers and wonder why we always have to do the hard things. Will fate, or a last-minute miracle, manage to sneak Mexico into the round of 32? Or, as often happens, will we end up saying “there was a letter for next time”?
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