Sven Goran Eriksson will make his first of possibly many trips to the United States as Mexico coach when Mexico plays Chile in a friendly in September.
Not sure if he'll think that's a good thing or not.
Mexico, of course, plays more friendlies on American soil than they do in Mexican turf. World Cup qualifiers and the like are played on their home soil but when it comes to cashing in on friendlies, the money is greener in the United States.
Coaches and players have complained about such a schedule before - Tuca Ferreti's Guate-peor rant comes to mind - and now we'll have the chance to find out what a relative outsider thinks about it.
The game is on Wednesday, Sept. 24 at the LA Coliseum.
Which brings up another point. The game will come 11 days after USC-Ohio State duke it out on the same turf. The money is greener but I believe the field will be, uh, shittier here as well. The Coliseum's nightmarish field conditions have been well documented.
If nothing else, maybe Sven and Becks can do lunch. That might be one of the few positives from the trip to SoCal.
4 comments:
LB do you think that Sven will be judged harishly from mexican fans, media and players who didn't want a european coach if they lose in this friendly or during the qualifiers?
Most definitely. If he doesn't beat Honduras - a tie won't cut it - he's going to be feeling the heat from the start. And even if he does win, some may still criticize him if the victory is not up to their standards.
By the time this game rolls around, though, Mexico will have played three qualifiers so the team will either be in a much more stable position or chaos will reign over El Tri.
Personally, I think he'll do fine but I get the feeling not everyone feels the same way.
Do you know why they always play at the Colosseum? I've never been but I hear horrible things about that stadium. Why not play at the Rose Bowl?
I know the Colosseum is probably closer to the Mexican population centers in LA, but for international friendlies with non-Latin teams it seems like the Rose Bowl should be used.
Don't know actually, but that's a good question. They did use the Rose Bowl for their sendoff game to the World Cup on May 5, 2006. But aside from that they haven't exactly used it often. Maybe it's easier to get access to the Coliseum than the Rose Bowl or there is some sort of pre-existing deal with the Coliseum.
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