Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.
Javier Aguirre described playing at home as “priceless” after Mexico’s victory over South Korea confirmed they will play their last-32 World Cup tie on their own soil.
Mexico made it two wins from two at their home tournament on Thursday, with CD Guadalajara’s Luis Romo scoring the only goal at his club’s home stadium, profiting from a mistake from South Korea goalkeeper Kim Seung-Gyu.
El Tri now have nothing riding on their final Group A game, versus Czechia in Mexico City, and they will play their round-of-32 tie against a third-place finisher at the Estadio Azteca on June 30.
For the first time in their World Cup history, Mexico have become the first team at a particular edition to qualify for the knockout stages. They have progressed beyond the group stage on eight of their last nine participations, only failing to do so in 2022.
Only two last-32 ties are being held in Mexico, with the other being between the Group F winners and the Group C runners-up in Guadalupe, so Aguirre was delighted to ensure his team will not be playing in the United States or Canada.
“The Mexico factor is very important. In 1986, our home was a volcano, the wave itself, playing at home is priceless,” he said after Thursday’s win.
“And when I say home, I mean from Ensenada to Cancun, and everything in between. Of course, I am happy about that.
“We have at least guaranteed two more games in our territory, people will come with enthusiasm, and hopefully we can continue winning, let’s see how far we can go.”
Mexico also know that if they win their round-of-32 tie, they will remain in Mexico City for the last 16, possibly to face the Group L winners, with England currently favourites to take that spot.
The three co-hosts remain unbeaten, and Mexico are winners of Group A and headed to the Azteca for a knockout stage game.
They haven’t been dominant, but they’ve done it while conceding four shots on target and 0.76 xG in two games. pic.twitter.com/VR3XViU4Hf
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) June 19, 2026
Mexico came into the tournament ranked 14th in the world by FIFA, and Aguirre says one of the team’s aims is to break into the top 10.
“The qualification was not easy. In football you have to turn the page, it is something complicated,” he said.
“Czechia are coming next, and let’s see what [round-of-32] opponent we get. Our analysts are waiting for who it could be, but it’s anecdotal.
“What counts is the final place. FIFA ranks us 14th, I want to tell my players to get into the top 10.”
It was hardly a free-flowing performance from Aguirre’s team, though, as they had eight shots and accumulated 0.53 expected goals, compared to South Korea’s nine shots and 0.91 xG.
“It’s always difficult to come out completely satisfied, anxiety got the better of us, we were much more patient, not passive, they are a very tough team,” he added.
“Their goalkeeper makes a mistake and then a save, Tala [Mexico goalkeeper Raul Rangel] saved the only one they had. It was tactical, difficult to digest.”
South Korea boss Hong Myung-bo, meanwhile, urged his team to move on, with the Opta supercomputer still assigning them an 89.8% chance of reaching the knockouts ahead of facing South Africa in their final game.
“South Africa are a team, with lots of speed,” Hong said. “We need to prepare tactically well.”
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