Mexico City, July 1 (IANS) Mexico manager Javier Aguirre said reaching the World Cup round of 16 carried special meaning after overcoming a hurdle that had eluded him in his previous spells in charge of the team.

Wednesday’s 2-0 win over Ecuador marked Mexico’s first World Cup knockout-stage victory since it last hosted the tournament in 1986, when Aguirre was a player.

The 67-year-old managed the Mexico teams that were eliminated in the first knockout round at the 2002 and 2010 World Cups.

“It means a lot to me; I was never able to play that fifth match. It happened in South Korea and Japan [in 2002] and in South Africa [in 2010]. We had good group stages, but we couldn’t move forward,” Aguirre said in a press conference as quoted by Xinhua.

Aguirre praised his players’ unity after first-half goals from Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez sealed Mexico’s fourth straight win of the tournament without conceding.

“I can tell you that this team deserves what is happening,” he said. “There is a special connection with the fans and the privilege of playing a World Cup at home,” he said.

“Today we’re among the last 16, and we’ve been together for a long time. We’re very happy and highly focused. We’re a true family, and that’s difficult to find in football. The players, the coaching staff and everyone working behind the scenes. There is a lot of unity,” he added.

Mexico’s next opponent will be the winner of Wednesday’s round of 32 match between England and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Aguirre stressed that neither team could be taken lightly, underlining the importance of rest and preparation.

“We’ll watch the match [between England and DR Congo] and recover as best we can between now and Sunday. We’ll keep our spirits up during the week and do our best to play another good match,” he concluded.

–IANS

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