TOKYO, Japan – 2012 Olympic champions Mexico will open their 2020 Tokyo Olympics campaign with a Group A showdown against France on Thursday at the Tokyo Stadium in Tokyo.
El Tricolor are participating in their third straight Olympics after claiming first place in the 2020 Concacaf Men’s Olympic Qualifying Championship in Guadalajara last March.
Many of the players who led Mexico to that CMOQ title are back in the fold in Tokyo, including 2020 CMOQ Golden Ball winner Alexis Vega, top scorer Sebastian Cordova (4 goals) and the always dangerous Uriel Antuna, who had three goals during the tournament.
Also in the mix is young attacker Diego Lainez, who delivered a scintillating performance for Mexico in the Final of the 2021 Concacaf Nations League Finals when he came off the bench and scored for Mexico in their narrow 3-2 extra time defeat to the United States.
El Tricolor will also be bolstered by the presence of veteran GK Guillermo Ochoa in the back. The Club America man is over of Mexico’s three overage players and will assuredly provide calm and leadership in what should be an open affair with the French.
France have a Gold Medal in their trophy cabinet as well, coming at Los Angeles 1984, and now a new generation of Les Bleus will be looking to take down El Tricolor.
A very familiar sight for the Mexican players will be on the other side of the ball, with France selecting Tigres FW Andre-Pierre Gignac as one of their overage players.
Gignac is one of the most feared strikers in Liga MX and recently won Golden Ball and Golden Boot honors with the Monterrey club at the 2020 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League.
His familiarity with the Mexican squad should make for a compelling encounter between these two historic sides.
