U.S. midfielder Jermaine Jones says he has previously warned Mexico forward Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez to stop complaining to the referees as the two teams get ready to face each other on Friday in Columbus, Ohio, for a critical CONCACAF World Cup qualifier.
The Colorado Rapids attacking midfielder, who returned recently from a torn lateral collateral ligament in his right knee, said he took the Bayer Leverkusen star aside during Mexico's 3-2 win over the U.S. last year at the CONCACAF Confederations Cup playoff.
"He's always talking, like 'Referee here, referee here!' and I told him, I said -- You can see I pull him right here [points to video] and I said: 'Small boy, come here: We have to talk.'
"And I told him: 'Stop always explaining.' But I think after the game was everything cool," Jones told Univision.
The two teams meet at Columbus Crew's MAPFRE stadium for the U.S.'s fifth straight home World Cup qualifier against Mexico. The game has become known as "Dos a cero" following four straight U.S. wins by 2-0 scores.
Jones said that the rivalry between the two countries ramps up the expectations and admitted that he keeps close tabs on Hernandez.
"I think everybody who knows Chicharito knows he is always playing on the line. And he's always, I'm not saying a dirty player, but he's always on that edge to offside," Jones said.
Tim Howard agreed in a later interview with ESPN FC, but the U.S. goalkeeper also said Hernandez was a serious goal threat.
"He plays on the edge. He's not your typical Mexican striker. He leads the line," Howard said. "He's always in there getting the ugly goals, getting the tough ones. He fights for every scrap and every piece.
"So for me he's always been a guy you can't switch on -- 90 minutes you have to know where he is."
Jones made his return to Colorado on Oct. 31 in the Rapids' 1-0 loss to the LA Galaxy, his first time playing since July 4.
And while U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann has admitted he is taking a big risk in playing Jones, 35, he also said he wouldn't leave him out.
"Jermaine Jones is a player that, when he's on the field, other teams simply fear him," Klinsmann told MLS Soccer. "Other teams just simply respect him a lot. There's the body language. There's his energy. There's the dynamic approach to everything he's doing.
"He's just elevating the games with his presence, and that's why -- to have him just in our roster, and I'm not saying that he's playing from the beginning on against Mexico -- but just having him with us is huge for us. So thankfully he made it on time."
#PlayersCut: @TimHowardGK & @JermaineJunior recall the last #USAvMEX #WCQ in Columbus. Re-Watch #DosaCero 2013: https://t.co/1Hj6LGzdhM pic.twitter.com/FIGwb6KAde
- U.S. Soccer (@ussoccer) November 10, 2016
While Colorado lost 1-0 in the first leg of its Western Conference semifinal thanks to Giovani dos Santos' header for the LA Galaxy, Jones said he wouldn't back down if he had to go up against Dos Santos on Friday.
"I would say the last week I played against Dos Santos, and I don't pull back," Jones said. "He's a good friend, I know him but there's still a 50-50 chance that I won't pull back against him.
"But this is him now against Mexico. I think we respect all the players, but we know that there is something big on the line to get. It's not only three points for the Hex."
The match is the opener of the 10-game final round of CONCACAF qualifying.
The top three nations qualify for the 2018 World Cup, and the No. 4 team advances to a playoff against the fifth-place Asian team for another berth.
Mexico has gone 12-1-2 since former Chicago Fire and New York Red Bulls coach Juan Carlos Osorio took over in October 2015 -- the loss was a 7-0 quarterfinal defeat to Chile in Copa America in June.
"There's like a big rivalry, and we want to win always against Mexico, and Mexico always want to win against you," Jones said.