Hirving Lozano’s first-half goal and sturdy second-half defense gave Mexico a 1-0 victory over Germany on Sunday, providing the first major surprise of the 2018 World Cup.
The game was a back-and-forth barnburner from the start, with El Tri taking advantage of Germany’s slow midfield.
Sami Khedira and Toni Kroos didn’t look like they could deal with the pace of the game, and Germany manager Jogi Löw never fixed the problem.
Germany had 25 shots by the end of the game, but no goals.
El Tri goalkeeper Memo Ochoa was superb, while Mexico always had a way to relieve pressure due to Germany’s lack of midfield.
the Low-led side will have work to do now, with games against Sweden and South Korea to come.
But it has given up the wheel in the group to Mexico, which arrived in Russia with its most talented, most experienced, most highly regarded team in years. It surely now feels anything must be possible.
