Fifa World Cup: Mexico boss calls ceasefire on mobile phone war, gives South Korea verdict

While Mexicans grow more and more feverish as their beloved national team makes World Cup progress, the head coach Javier Aguirre’s new-found serenity has persuaded him to call a ceasefire on his long-standing war on mobile phones.
A polar opposite personality from Hong Myung-bo, his opposite number in the victory over South Korea on Thursday that booked Mexico’s spot in the last 32, the charismatic Aguirre also led the North Americans in the 2002 and 2010 finals.
They were eliminated in the first knockout round on both occasions.
Aguirre said he “used to be more stringent”, and was known for sending a staff member to catch any of his squad using their phones at meal times or in the dressing room.
“Last time I was always fighting with the players,” he said. “I used to declare war on smartphones. This time, I am not bothered. [The players] have a more relaxed head coach.
“I’m calmer, more serene. Having two granddaughters helps. I don’t mind [players] being on their smartphones all the time. I permit them during meals. I no longer give importance to things that are not important.”

There was an unmistakable morning-after-the-night-before feeling in Guadalajara on Friday morning as the locals either slept off hangovers, quietly sipped coffee and rifled through newspapers, or dosed on Lemsip to recover voices lost in a stadium where the volume rarely dimmed.
Come the early afternoon, they began filing into sports bars to peer at the big screens showing USA ease past Australia, then potential round-of-32 opponents Scotland go down 1-0 to Morocco.
They were sufficiently engaged in the football to be untroubled by the Mexican norm of populating menus with around six different types of beers, only for the waiting staff to apologetically reveal only one is available.

When it comes to the football, the natives are not so patient. Whoever they face next, Mexico must find a way to keep their heads in an Azteca Stadium where supporters can tend towards the furiously overwrought at the first sign of things going awry.
An industrious midfielder in the Mexico side that reached the last eight of their home World Cup in 1986, Aguirre, whose side are on a last-16 Azteca collision course with England, said: “There’s nothing like being at home, it’s priceless.
“At least we’ve guaranteed two more games on our territory. People will come because of the enthusiasm. Hopefully, we can keep winning. Let’s see how far we can go.”
Still, there was a sense of the 67-year-old talking up his players when he drew a favourable comparison between how Mexico handled the oppressive atmosphere in Guadalajara, and the way they “panicked” in their opening against South Africa.
“We didn’t play a spectacular match … but we did play well,” he said. “We showed maturity; we were without the ball for long periods, but despite that, we didn’t lose our composure. We were patient against a very tough team that we managed to neutralise.”
That was a very generous verdict, Mexico having appeared bewildered over how to relieve the South Koreans of possession, let alone make inroads, until Luis Romo exploited an inexplicable error from goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu to score the game’s only goal.
“I thought only my teammates were around, so I tried to secure [the ball] safely, but the result was bad,” said an apologetic Kim, who shelled a routine cross. In that moment, he must have wondered about the wisdom of missing the birth of his first child for a pre-tournament camp.
Poised to step aside for assistant boss and popular former player Rafael Marquez after the World Cup, Aguirre is too long in the tooth to not recognise that Mexico need a perceptible upgrade to match the country’s class of ‘86.
Too wise, too, to tell journalists how he planned to celebrate becoming the first boss to advance from the group stage, regardless of the fact he footed the bill for an eve-of-tournament night out with the home press pack.
“Don’t lead me into temptation,” Aguirre said. “I won’t tell you my plans.
“My players are young and euphoric; they are all on social media. Over time, they’ll understand they [too] have to be respectful to journalists.”
Managing in a World Cup is also nothing new for Hong, who was in charge of South Korea for the 2014 finals. An opening victory over Czech Republic means they have already improved on their one-point return from that competition, and Aguirre said he made them favourites to overcome South Africa in their closing match next Wednesday.

They need a draw to be sure of joining Mexico in the knockout stage, albeit in this bloated, jeopardy-free tournament, it is not inconceivable that defeat will not be fatal.
A fine defender in the Koreans’ 2002 World Cup semi-final team, the taciturn Hong did not send the most positive message when he pointed to the suspensions of South Africa midfield pair Teboho Mokoena and Themba Zwane for the Monterrey clash as causes for optimism.
He also disclosed that his team’s original plan against Mexico was to reach the 20-minute mark scoreless, surely anathema to high-calibre Korean attackers such as Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in.
“The goal we conceded was regrettable, but there’s no need to hang our heads,” Hong said. “South Africa is a team with good speed. We need to prepare tactically well.”
Kim Min-jae, the Bayern Munich defender who headed a presentable stoppage-time chance against Mexico well wide, said: “Mistakes can happen any time. We shouldn’t dwell on it and should focus on the next game.”