After captaining Mexico to their ninth Gold Cup championship, veteran goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa has faith that interim head coach Jaime Lozano has what it takes to lead El Tri going forward if he is hired on a permanent basis.
The legendary Mexican figure, who has featured in several World Cups and Gold Cups, have expressed his desire for Lozano to remain as his national team’s head coach. Having an experienced player like Ochoa, as well as several other Mexican players, come out and say this will not have been lost on the Federation..
The 38-year-old also broke a couple of records at the Gold Cup: he became the first player to win five Gold Cups and became the most-capped Mexican player at the competition with 25 appearances. Ochoa was also awarded the Golden Glove, given to the best goalkeeper at the tournament as he kept four clean sheets and conceded only two goals.
“It was a tournament where there was too much pressure, where there was talk of more than one group of footballers and high-quality people, with talent, who want to excel and showed a lot of personality in this situation and the reward is the title,” said Ochoa.
“For me, above all, it is a pride that a Mexican has that [most titles in Gold Cup history] record, it is the most important thing. It is the result of effort, sacrifice, dedication, work and perseverance. Dedicate it to the fans, to my family who put up with me and to my teammates who help me.”
Lozano’s contract is now up as it was originally signed through the Gold Cup. But Ochoa, and Lozano himself, hope that the contract will be extended with El Tri.
“We have mentioned it since day one, Jaime understands what it is to represent Mexico, he understands the footballer very well, he brings out the best in each player and he sees himself reflected on the pitch,” the Salernitana player said.
Whether or not Guillermo Ochoa is the No. 1 goalkeeper choice in the future with Mexico, his comments about the next head coach should be taken into account given his status and service to his country.
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