Upcoming Mexico friendlies are anything but a waste of time

With an eye on the upcoming friendlies in Europe in the month of November and a possible return of Carlos Vela, it is easy to see why a lot of people would find Mexico's friendlies against Honduras and Panama as offering very little sporting value. And why not? The game against Chile exemplified a success in both the commercial and sporting side of the game for the Mexican National team. To be the best you have to beat the best,or so the saying goes.

But buried deep in the scars left behind from that cruel Fortaleza afternoon are the ones only covered by the silence of the Rommel Fernandez and a Graham Zusi goal. To not acknowledge that Mexico failed to defeat Honduras and needed a moment of magic from Raul Jimenez to narrowly defeat Panama in the 2014 qualification process would be foolish.

Motivated by enthusiasm from advertisers and Mexico's false self-entlitement, it is difficult to remember that Robben's dive was close to never actually happening. But self-entitlement and beer commercials can only get you so far as the 2014 World Cup hosts demonstrated. For Brazil it all went kaput losing 7-1 in their own backyard. Mexico got away with only a stern warning, largely due to the fact of the USMNT.

Moments of reflection will come and go. Sooner rather than later, the Hexagonal will be here and Russia will be right around the corner. More than an acknowledgment that there are stadiums outside of the US and Mexico City, it is the first real test of the idea that Mexico is no longer the big green monster of the north.

True, Honduras and Panama are early in their new managerial processes. But it is in the clash of styles. It is the incessant cut of play, the narrowing down of spaces, and the brute strenght of opponents which mitigated Mexico so much in recent years.

Honduras manager Hernand Medford was there in the first "Aztecazo" when Costa Rica defeated Mexico 2-1. He was the one responsible for capitalizing on an Oswaldo Sanchez mistake and making the score 2-1. More than anybody, he knows just how sweet a victory against Mexico really is.

In a region that is looking increasingly more red, blue, and white(Costa Rica and USA), the Germany and Argentinas will have to wait. For now, Honduras and Panama are anything but a waste of time.

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