El Tri look to rewrite history Along with the United States, Mexico remain head and shoulders above the rest of the CONCACAF nations. Testimony of this was the straightforward manner in which Ricardo Lavolpe's side sealed their place at the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™. A surprising draw in Panama and the now customary reverse in the United States were the only two blemishes for El Tricolor on their relentless march to Germany.

Mexico got the final leg of their qualifying campaign off to a great start with a vital win over Costa Rica in San Jose on 9 February 2005. Two goals from midfielder Jaime Lozano inside the opening 15 minutes put them on the road to a 2-1 win. Three points became six two months later after Lavolpe's charges got the better of the visiting USA side at the Azteca Stadium in another 2-1 victory.

After defeating their two main rivals in their first couple of games, Mexico were in no mood to lose to the lesser lights. A 1-1 draw in Panama was followed by a comfortable 2-0 success in Guatemala, a sequence of results that gave them an outright lead in the six-team group. Subsequent victories over Trinidad and Tobago and Costa Rica (both 2-0) left Mexico just a point away from assuring their presence in Germany.

The USA then put the Aztec party on hold by handing them their first defeat of the qualifiers, 2-0 in Columbus, but El Tri made no mistake at the second time of asking with a resounding five-goal rout of Panama on home soil. Mexico then wound up their qualifying campaign with another display of attacking might, a 5-2 win over Guatemala, before going down 2-1 to Trinidad and Tobago with a much-changed side in their final game.

Thus coach Ricardo Lavolpe kept his promise to take his side through to Germany "at a canter". Combining the experience of Rafael Marquez and Oswaldo Sanchez with the youthful talent of players like Carlos Salcido and Francisco Fonseca, Mexico have become a very difficult side to beat. This was never more apparent than at the FIFA Confederations Cup Germany 2005, where they downed eventual winners Brazil 1-0, before losing on penalties to Argentina in the semi-finals.

On top of the confidence gained from their FIFA Confederations Cup exploits, Mexico have solidity throughout the side that augurs well for Germany. The team have been in the top ten of the FIFA Coca-Cola World Ranking for several years now and in 2005 reached the dizzying heights of the top five. Add to this a wealth of experience at the FIFA World Cup™, for which they have qualified 12 times, progressing past the initial group stage on three occasions.

Lavolpe and his men now know that the chance to make history beckons. If they can maintain the form they have shown over the past few months and take their chances, El Tri have every chance of making it to the quarter-finals of the FIFA World Cup for the first time on foreign soil.