Mexico's World Cup survival doesn't end concerns

Mexico's players celebrate a goal against New Zealand Mexico needed to fly all the way to New Zealand to finally book their ticket to the 2014 World Cup, surviving a rocky qualifying campaign that raised concerns about their chances in Brazil. With their 4-2 win over New Zealand in the second leg of their intercontinental play-off on Wednesday, which followed a 5-1 triumph in Mexico City, the Mexicans have now reached 15 of 20 World Cup finals.
While they trounced the much lower ranked All Whites, few would have predicted that Mexico would need to compete in a play-off to qualify for the tournament.
"There is nothing to celebrate," said Carlos Albert, who played for the team that won the gold medal at the Pan American Games in 1967.
This year marked Mexico's "worst performance in history," Albert wrote in his column for El Universal newspaper.
Mexico last missed the World Cup in 1990, but it was because they were banned after the federation fielded older players in a youth tournament.
The Mexicans were favourites again to secure one of the three direct qualifying spots in the North and Central America and the Caribbean confederation (CONCACAF).
But in CONCACAF's decisive "hexagonal" phase, Mexico only managed to win twice and scored a paltry seven goals in 10 games.
While the United States, Costa Rica and Honduras grabbed the first three spots, the Mexicans only secured fourth place after their bitter rivals, the Americans, rescued them by beating Panama in the last game.
During the dismal campaign, the much-criticised federation fired three managers in a six-week span before settling for Miguel Herrera, manager of Mexican league champions America, for the two-leg play-off.
While Mexico scored nine goals against New Zealand, Herrera said the team still had work to do after allowing the unfancied Kiwis to score twice in Wellington.
"It was very tough for us to make it," said Herrera, who is widely expected to stay on. "Obviously we have to do a lot of work off the field and also on the field."
In a risky move, Herrera shook things up after taking over, favouring domestic league players while leaving out Europe-based stars such as Manchester United's Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez.
Compounding the crisis, one of Mexico's in-form stars, Carlos Vela, who plays for Spain's Real Sociedad, has refused to return to the national team.
Herrera, who selected several players from his America team, has not made clear whether Hernandez or Villarreal's Giovani dos Santos would return for the World Cup.
While the qualification was a huge relief to the football-mad nation, sponsors and broadcasters were spared big losses that experts said could have exceeded $600 million.
Critics say it is time for Mexico to fire federation bosses and review its model, which they say is beholden to the short-term economic interests of club owners.
"Saying it was a rough patch, a crisis or a bad spell will only mean sweeping the problem under the rug," wrote David Faitelson of the sports daily Record.
"We need a cleansing, a new direction, a balance that will allow this football to be not only rich in the coffers, but also on the field."
Source: AFP