Scotland have the ball in defence as time expires, and the referee ends the match with the ball at midfield.
90' +1
The referee indicates there will be three minutes added to the end of the match for stoppages.
89'
MARCO FABIAN FIRES HIGH! The midfielder cuts inside and blasts a strike towards the Scotland goal but his shot fails to stay down and it goes over the crossbar and out for a goal-kick! That was wonderfully hit by Fabian who plays his club football for Eintracht Frankfurt.
87'
Jesus Corona cuts back four or five times inside the penalty area, earning some space between him and Graeme Shinnie before putting in a back-post cross which goes unmet. The ball is finally fired towards Bain by Aquino, whose effort is horribly wide.
85'
Mexico are holding possession but are constantly looking to go forward and break quickly – as El Tri are having fun it seems entertaining the fans in the final few moments. The home side have been thoroughly dominant, and the 1-0 score does not reflect that accurately.
80'
L. Morgan enters the game and replaces O. McBurnie.
Oli McBurnie is removed despite being Scotland’s best chance of equalising in the first 80 minutes. Lewis Morgan comes on to replace him.
78'
Scotland take the corner but are unable to beat the first man and Jesus Corona leads the counter-attack. The ball is switched just in front of the penalty area for Javier Aquino but the wide man’s shot-cum-cross is off-target and Scotland clear and avoid another nervy moment defending the counter.
73'
J. Corona enters the game and replaces H. Lozano.
Hirving Lozano exits the pitch to a standing ovation from the Azteca crowd as Jesus Corona takes his place. It’s incredible that Lozano does not have a goal tonight – he has given the Scottish defence all kinds of trouble tonight but was denied at the crucial moment by the crossbar.
72'
MEXICO HAVE THE BALL IN THE NET RULED OFFSIDE! Oribe Peralta bundles the ball past Bain after Lozano forces a save out of the goalkeeper but the linesman’s flag is raised immediately as the striker is unable to hold his onside position.
70'
DEFLECTION! Oribe Peralta takes a long-range strike which hits Charlie Mulgrew in the back and goes out for a corner. Had that ball’s trajectory not changed – it had the look of beating Bain.
Minute
Description
69'
Russell gets into the Mexican penalty area and dribbles towards the byline, getting past Ayala and teetering on the edge of the out-of-bounds line before inexplicably slipping and falling – which allows Ochoa to easily collect.
66'
CROSSBAR FOR LOZANO! HOW HAS HE NOT SCORED YET!? Lozano’s slaloming dribble gets him into the penalty area and he wires a shot high into the net, but the crossbar denies him and the ball bounces outwards. The rebound comes to newly introduced Marco Fabian who also aims high, though Fabian misses the net entirely.
63'
J. Aquino enters the game and replaces C. Vela.
LAFC’s Carlos Vela has played his final minutes in this match, as Javier Aquino takes his place.
61'
Miguel Layun’s free-kick from the left is really disappointing as the service is aimed directly at the goalkeeper, who clears the danger towards midfield. Mexico regain possession and Lozano sends a back-post cross after a quick bit of build-up on the right-hand side but the delivery is again poor and the ball rolls out for a goal-kick.
58'
M. Fabián enters the game and replaces H. Herrera.
Hector Herrera, who was not as influential in this match as he was in his previous fixture against Wales, will be taken out of the game for Marco Fabian.
57'
O. Peralta enters the game and replaces R. Jiménez.
J. dos Santos enters the game and replaces G. dos Santos.
Juan Carlos Osorio counters Scotland’s changes and makes four of his own, with Raul Jimenez leaving the pitch for Oribe Peralta after Jimenez failed to put Mexico two goals up despite having an open net to aim at.
Giovani dos Santos, who put Mexico ahead by a goal will be removed just before the hour mark, with his brother – Jonathan dos Santos replacing him.
55'
C. Cadden enters the game and replaces K. McLean.
C. Mulgrew enters the game and replaces C. Paterson.
J. McGinn enters the game and replaces R. Christie.
Jon McGinn is introduced on the left, taking the place of Ryan Christie who has been rarely involved in this contest.
Callum Paterson is removed in attack, with Charlie Mulgrew sent in, with Alex McLeish hoping that the Blackburn Rovers forward can capitalize on a good bit of pressure Scotland have been exerting on Mexico’s defence.
Scotland prepare a number of changes at the 55 minute mark, with Kenny McLean’s exit for Christopher Cadden in midfield the first.
52'
Scotland take their corner short but Ryan Christie’s shot is blocked and Mexico charge downfield towards Bain’s goal in numbers. Somehow, after a cross from Lozano to Jimenez across an empty box, Jimenez is unable to send the ball into the net, and after a mad scramble in the penalty area, Scotland clear the danger and manage to escape without conceding.
49'
MCBURNIE HITS THE POST! The cross comes in from the left by Johnny Russell who weights his pass perfectly and it’s McBurnie who rises highest to meet it – but the young striker directs his nodded effort straight against the left-hand post. That is Scotland’s best chance of the match so far!
47'
GREAT STRIKE BY LOZANO! Once again Lozano is at the centre of Mexico’s attack as the PSV man fires a strike at the palms of Bain who has just entered the match. The goalkeeper meets it well and sends it out for a corner, which amounts to nothing after Mexico fail to connect on the delivery.
46'
S. Bain enters the game and replaces J. McLaughlin.
R. Márquez enters the game and replaces C. Salcedo.
Scotland change goalkeepers at the half and send Scott Bain in for Jon McLaughlin, who had a very busy first half.
Carlos Salcedo exits the pitch and the entire stadium roars as Rafael Marquez – Mexico’s captain enters in his place.
The referee’s whistle signals the start of the second half with Mexico taking the kick-off!
45'
The referee blows his whistle and ends the first half without allowing any stoppage time!
43'
Mexico win a corner which Layun sends in with his left. The ball curls away from goal and Scotland are able to boot it up field and clear their lines before winning a throw-in on the halfway line.
41'
Raul Jimenez gets into the penalty area but can only fire a shot from an acute angle on the right which fails to trouble McLaughlin in the Scottish goal. Its one-way traffic at the Azteca as the home side are dominant – showing why they will be featuring in the World Cup.
38'
Layun steals possession and initiates a counter-attack. Lozano then receives the ball on the left and drives towards goal before firing a shot which forces an incredible stretching save from McLaughlin who pushes it away smartly and out of danger. Scotland are offering very little in attack and Ochoa has barely seen any action.
35'
Miguel Layun stands over the free-kick and uses his left foot to whip a ball into McLaughlin, but the full-back miscues his effort and the set-piece sails high over the crossbar and out for a goal-kick.
33'
Mexico are cycling the ball in front of the Scotland goal and win a free-kick on the edge of the penalty area after Carlos Vela is pushed down from behind by Dylan McGeouch.
29'
MIGUEL LAYUN HITS THE POST! From outside the penalty area, Layun uses his left to curl a beautiful effort towards McLaughin’s goal, but the ball cannons off the left-hand post! Mexico were so close to going up by two, and they would be deserving of it as well after a string of nice offensive moves.
26'
Lozano once again breaks through on goal and is all alone against McLaughlin but the winger once again miscues his final ball and sends it wide left.
23'
Lozano curls in a ball over the top for Giovani dos Santos, but there seems to be some disconnect between the two and the pass is hit much too hard. Disappointing from a Mexico side who are really getting into their groove offensively, as El Tri are finding it very easy to get near the Scotland net.
17'
Hirving Lozano drives to the byline but the winger runs out of room before he can put in a cross – much to the criticism of the home support.
15'
That’s more like it from Mexico who have scored a goal for the first time in over 200 minutes of football. Gio dos Santos’ left-footed strike was necessary for the confidence of the side it seems and will provide dos Santos with some confidence before heading to Russia.
13'
G. dos Santos has scored a goal for Mexico! Assist by C. Vela.
GOOOOOAAL FOR GIOVANI DOS SANTOS! After a missed bicycle kick from a cross on the right, Carlos Vela collects the ball who lays it to dos Santos who was waiting on the penalty spot. The striker fires a strike with his left foot and it was perfectly placed in the bottom corner. McLaughlin had no chance! 1-0 Mexico!
Carlos Vela's ball was perfectly laid off for dos Santos - and he will be credited with an assist for his contribution to the goal.
10'
CHANCE! Guillermo Ochoa makes a diving save from an Oli McBurnie half-volley. The striker has stayed down after the strike but after a bit of treatment, he has returned to his feet. That was tricky for Ochoa who had to dive at an awkward angle.
7'
Scotland will be playing at the famous Estadio Azteca for the very first time, having failed to do so after missing out on the World Cup in 1970, and losing out in the group stage during the 1986 finals in Mexico under Sir Alex Ferguson.
4'
The first chance of the match falls to Mexico as Miguel Layin gets free on the left and prepares to send in a cross – but the ball delivery is substandard and it fails to trouble Jon McLaughlin on its way behind for a goal-kick.
1'
Scotland take the kick-off and get the match underway at the Estadio Azteca!
Good evening and welcome to our live commentary of the pre-World Cup international friendly between Mexico and Scotland from the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City!
Two friendlies remain on Mexico’s calendar before their World Cup adventure begins on the 17th of June against the holders – Germany. Juan Carlos Osorio will be looking to use as many players as possible against Scotland today, as the Mexican manager must trim his squad down from 28 to 23 before their final friendly against Denmark one week from today.
El Tri’s last result was a forgetful one – a nil-nil draw against an experimental Wales side in Pasadena, California which lacked Gareth Bale who was rested after his heroic Champions League double. Despite the experience of Javier Hernandez, Jesus Corona and Giovani dos Santos in attack, the Mexican side could not break down the compact defence of Ryan Giggs' Wales.
Mexico are preparing for a difficult group at the World Cup, with Germany, Sweden and South Korea their opponents in the round robin. This will be Mexico’s seventh consecutive appearance at the tournament since last missing out on qualification in 1990. Scotland, on the other hand, have not featured at international football’s largest event since they were eliminated at the group stage of the 1998 edition.
Manager Alex McLeish has been in charge of the Scottish national team since the departure of Gordon Strachan following Scotland’s failure to qualify for the World Cup. The former Rangers and Birmingham City boss has taken charge of three games so far during his second stint in charge of his own national team – suffering defeats to Costa Rica and Peru, but beating Hungary 1-0.
Despite failing to qualify for Russia, Scotland’s friendly today against Mexico will leave them in good stead going forward as the Tartan Army only have one more international fixture before the commencement of the UEFA Nations League – a friendly against Belgium in September. Albania and Israel complete the trio of teams vying for promotion to International League B, with Scotland’s debut coming on the 10th of September against Christian Panucci’s Albania.
With 15 minutes before kick-off, it's about time we took a look at the starting XI's! Let's start with the home side!
Mexico Substitutes: Erick Gutierrez, Alfredo Talavera, Jesus Corona, Javier Aquino, Jonathan dos Santos, Rafael Marquez, Oribe Peralta, Javier Hernandez, Marco Fabian.
Mexico Starting XI (4-2-3-1): Guillermo Ochoa; Miguel Layin, Jesus Gallardo, Hugo Ayala, Carlos Salcedo; Edson Alvarez, Hector Herrera; Carlos Vela, Giovani dos Santos, Hirving Lozano; Raul Jimenez.
Scotland Substitutes: Chris Cadden, Scott Bain, Jordan Archer, Jamie Murphy, Charlie Mulgrew, John McGinn, Lewis Morgan.
Scotland Starting XI (4-4-1-1): Jon McLaughlin; Stephen O’Donnell, Scott McKenna, Jack Hendry, Graeme Shinnie; Johnny Russell, Kenny McLean, Dylan McGeouch, Ryan Christie; Callum Paterson, Oli McBurnie.
Juan Carlos Osorio makes nine changes from the side that drew with Wales four days ago and changes from a 4-3-3 to a 4-2-3-1. Guillermo Ochoa takes Jesus Corona’s place in goal while Oswaldo Alanis, and Erick Alvarez make way for Miguel Layun and Carlos Salcedo in defence. Erick Gutierrez, Jose Molina are dropped for Edson Alvarez and Carlos Vela. In attack, Javier Aquino, Javier Hernandez and Jesus Corona depart for Hirving Lozano, Giovani dos Santos and Raul Jimenez.
FULL-TIME: Mexico 1-0 Scotland.
That concludes our commentary of the match between Mexico and Scotland from the Estadio Azteca! We hope you enjoyed it and see you again next time!
Next up for Mexico is a friendly match with Denmark on the 9th of June before their opening match of the World Cup against Germany on the 17th. Scotland are not in action again until September, when they will play against Belgium in a friendly.
Oli McBurnie went closest to giving Scotland a goal at the Azteca, but his headed effort from a free-kick rattled Ochoa’s crossbar. Other than that, there was not much positive to take away from Scotland’s performance, though it has to be said that Alex McLeish went with a highly experimental line-up.
Mexico’s last match at home before heading to Russia for the World Cup ends in celebration as El Tri are fully deserving of their victory. Juan Carlos Osorio can go into his last friendly full of confidence, after having witnessed a brilliant attacking display, despite the low scoreline. Hirving Lozano was absolutely terrifying on the left-hand side, hitting a crossbar which would have put Mexico up by two. The PSV wide attacker should have at least netted a hat-trick, such was his influence today.
HALF-TIME: Mexico 1-0 Scotland.
Mexico go into the half with a deserved goal advantage after Giovani dos Santos’ first-time effort from inside the penalty area gave El Tri their first goal in over two games. El Tri have shown much more quality, controlling the tempo of play comfortably and forcing numerous saves from overworked Scotland keeper Jon Mclaughlin. Oli McBurnie had Scotland’s only real chance of note, sending his half-volley into the arms of Guillermo Ochoa.
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