Mexico and Portugal played out a listless 0-0 draw on a night of conflicting emotions at the Estadio Azteca.
Fans and officials were gearing up for a night of celebration at this stadium, which hosted the 1970 and 1986 World Cup finals. This was the grand reopening after a year of renovations, a preview showing ahead of five scheduled World Cup matches this summer, including the opener between cohost Mexico and South Africa.
Yet the scenes of jubilation were undercut by news of the tragic death of a fan, confirmed by local authorities shortly before kickoff.
Here are the talking points from Mexico City:
Tragedy mars Azteca reopening
This was a soft relaunch for one of world football’s holy sites, just two and a half months out from the World Cup. The Azteca — or Estadio Banorte if you’re feeling particularly corporate — had been closed since May 2024 for extensive renovations, with repeated delays casting doubt over its readiness.
A few of those will remain. The concourse of the stadium still had a slight building-site quality, while long queues for outer security gates left some fans scrambling to make kickoff. Things were much better inside, where FIFA president Gianni Infantino was in attendance. This giant ice cream scoop of a ground looked sleek and modern in its 60th year, a new pyrotechnic system lending a little extra spark to the pre-match festivities.
Tragically, though, the occasion would be overshadowed by the death of a fan, who — per Mexico City’s Office of Citizen Security — fell from the second level of the box seating area of the stands. Further details will naturally emerge in the days ahead, but the news brought a somber tone to what was supposed to be a night of celebration.
Mexico manager Javier Aguirre gives instruction during a water break in Saturday’s friendly vs. Portugal (Manuel Velasquez / Getty Images)
New-look Mexico impress in patches
As the World Cup approaches, Mexico’s injury list is as long as Moby Dick. Captain Edson Alvarez is working his way back from ankle surgery. Midfield prodigy Gilberto Mora has been dealing with a sports hernia. Jesus Orozco, who fractured an ankle in December, and Rodrigo Huescas have been out since last year. Santiago Gimenez recently had ankle surgery. Club America goalkeeper Luis Malagon ruptured his Achilles earlier this month, shortly before starting midfielder Marcel Ruiz ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament.
Faced with such bad luck, coach Javier Aguirre has had little choice but to conjure something on the fly. Here, he handed a debut to Spain-born midfielder Alvaro Fidalgo. Brian Gutierrez and Obed Vargas, both relative newcomers, also played, as did Chivas goalkeeper Raul Rangel.
The result, for the first 45 minutes especially, was quietly impressive. Fidalgo floated smartly between the lines. The elegant Gutierrez drifted in from the left and combined well with Raul Jimenez, as did Roberto Alvarado. There was to be no goal — and second-half changes broke the rhythm — but given the depth of the selection crisis, this must be regarded as a positive step for the cohosts.
Goncalo Ramos didn’t make the most of his chance to start vs. Mexico (Manuel Velasquez / Getty Images)
Ramos misses chance to make a point
The notion that Cristiano Ronaldo might be holding Portugal back has been on an interesting trajectory over the last few years. At first it was sacrilege, then mere contrariness. Over time, though, as Ronaldo has slipped out of view at club level, it has morphed into something like a majority view.
Everywhere, that is, except in Portugal. The players all speak of him in reverential tones. There is no substantial pack of Ronaldo doubters in the media. Roberto Martinez, the Portugal coach, has insisted that Ronaldo is still his first-choice striker on merit. “Cristiano’s last three years in the national team were earned, day by day,” Martinez told The Guardian this week.
Ronaldo’s absence through injury here did not open up a referendum on his position in the team, then. In any event, the man waiting in the wings — and, you suspect, waiting for Ronaldo to retire — did not grab his chance to make a point.
Gonçalo Ramos is an odd player, talented yet diffident, a matador who seems to have little taste for blood. He has a World Cup hat trick to his name but could probably walk around the streets of Mexico City without being recognized. He has a good scoring record for Paris Saint-Germain but is no closer to being a regular starter.
Here, playing between the pixie alliance of Chico Conceicao and Joao Felix, Ramos looked keen. He made some good runs, slung in one or two dangerous crosses. His one chance, though, passed him by. Bruno Fernandes got in down the left and cut the ball back perfectly; Ramos shanked his shot well wide.
Strikers miss chances. Ramos remains a very good player, pretty much the ideal backup option at this level. But on a night on which we learned very little about Portugal’s World Cup chances, it was a wasted opportunity to make the Ronaldo non-debate at least a smidge more interesting.