Mexico City, July 6 (IANS) Javier Aguirre apologized to Mexico’s fans after his side’s World Cup campaign ended with a 3-2 defeat to England in the round of 16 on Sunday.

The result ended Mexico’s hopes of a first World Cup quarterfinal since 1986 and marked Aguirre’s final match as head coach.

“We weren’t able to give the people one more night of happiness and joy,” Aguirre was quoted by Xinhua as saying. “I’d like to thank the fans who came to this stadium, the other stadiums and the fan festivals.”

“The only thing I can say to the fans is I’m sorry. We left our heart and soul on the pitch.”

Mexico fell behind 2-0 after Jude Bellingham struck twice in the space of three first-half minutes before Julian Quinones pulled a goal back at Mexico City Stadium.

Jarell Quansah’s early second-half dismissal briefly shifted the momentum, but Harry Kane restored England’s two-goal cushion from the penalty spot and Raul Jimenez’s late effort from 12 yards was not enough to force extra time.

“To beat England you have to play the perfect match,” Aguirre said. “We conceded twice, fought our way back and were in good spirits, but the third goal killed us. They defend very well and have a very solid squad.”

“We made three mistakes tonight and we paid the price. They had four or five chances and we had seven or eight, but that means nothing. They made fewer mistakes than we did.”

Aguirre led Mexico to 21 wins, eight draws and five losses after taking charge in July 2024.

He backed successor Rafael Marquez, who has served as his assistant, to lift the team to greater heights.

“I would have liked to say goodbye with a victory,” Aguirre said. “It’s very painful. I don’t have much to say and I’m not going to make excuses. A defeat is a defeat.”

“We made a couple more mistakes than England and we were doomed because of that.”

Mexico had won its previous four matches in the tournament without conceding a goal. Aguirre said his players had done all they could and asked for any blame to be directed at him.

“Those 26 players made me very happy,” he said. “They have to hold their heads high. If there’s anyone to criticize, criticize the head coach. They left everything on the pitch.”

–IANS

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