Aguirre: The First Step Is Always the Hardest

Mexico's head coach, Javier Aguirre, expressed satisfaction after his team's 2-0 victory over South Africa in their World Cup opener. He emphasized that the first step is always the most challenging, but his squad performed brilliantly to secure all three points.

"The first step is always the hardest, especially when the pressure and expectations of an entire nation rest on your shoulders. I'm incredibly happy for the lads. Starting this World Cup with three points at home is exactly what we dreamed of and worked for. The crowd gave us incredible momentum early on, and that early goal settled our nerves, but we knew South Africa wouldn't give up easily," Aguirre began.

The only sour note for "El Tri" was when César Montes received a direct red card, leaving the team with ten men on the field.

"The match became too chaotic in the final minutes, and I didn't like that. When you're leading 2-0 and the opponent is a man down, you need to control the ball and the tempo with composure. Instead, we succumbed to provocations and emotions. César Montes' red card is a big blow for us. He's a key pillar in our defense, and now we'll have to make forced and quick tactical adjustments for the next match. Football at this level doesn't forgive a loss of concentration for even a second," the coach added.

Finally, he praised the two goal-scorers of the match, Julián Quiñones and Raúl Jiménez.

"Raúl showed why he's here. Strikers live for goals, and his experience in such tight battles is invaluable. As for Julián, he had a fantastic game. That first goal was historic and lifted a huge weight off the entire team's shoulders. We had chances to close out the match much earlier, but the most important thing is that we secured the three points," the Mexican concluded.