Football
Tom Marshall, Mexico correspondent 5y

Mexico players take lessons from Argentina rout

SAN ANTONIO -- Mexico's 4-0 loss against Argentina on Sunday ended El Tri unbeaten run in 2019, but despite the thrashing, players are hoping to learn from the experience.

Mexico started brightly, but mistakes capitalized on by clinical hat-trick hero Lautaro Martinez saw Argentina head into the break four goals ahead, with the game at times looking like it would get even more ugly for El Tri, bringing back memories of the 7-0 loss to Chile in Copa America Centenario in 2016.

"It wasn't that bad," said Miguel Layun when asked about whether there were similarities with that defeat. "It was looking like being a disastrous game but we closed it out at 4-0 and in the second half, we were looking to score and reduce the deficit."

"We committed mistakes that national teams like [Argentina] don't forgive, we have to learn from it and we know that it can't happen again," he continued. "Their goal situations came quickly and leave a bad taste in the mouth, sometimes it is difficult to recuperate the rhythm."

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Goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa was adamant that remaining united after the 11-game undefeated run will be important.

"It's a friendly game, we have to move on and lift our heads," he said. "The work we have been doing has been could, but we have to correct a lot of things, remain as a team and be united."

Porto winger Jesus Corona maintained that El Tri shouldn't get carried away by the loss.

"It could be that sometimes we go crazy, we should be more concentrated," said Corona. "We have to learn and hopefully something like today this doesn't happen again."

"The mentality is ok, it's just sometimes this happens," he added "What are we going to do? The mentality is there, we just have to be more concentrated."

Following Tuesday's loss, Mexico manager Gerardo "Tata" Martino said that his side needed more games moving forward against top level opposition.

"I don't think [the defeat] is our reality and I also don't think that going 11 games without losing was our reality," the ex-Argentina and Barcelona manager said after the game. "It's the second 'A level' game we've had. The first was against Chile [in March]. And the substantial difference against Argentina and Chile is that tonight we committed the kinds of errors in which we knew Argentina could damage us."

Martino added that Mexico needs more games against world powers to test themselves regularly in trying conditions

"What I also understand is that so that this can be a learning experience doesn't happen we have to play more of these types of games and get used to them," he said.

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