There was plenty of red inside the Rose Bowl, but only one team got the bragging rights.
Mexico beat Peru 1-0 in an international friendly held at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., on Saturday off the back of a late winner.
Mexican winger Hirving “Chucky” Lozano found the back of the net on a corner kick in the 85th minute to give El Tri the win:
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Initially it was Mexican defensive midfielder Edson Álvarez who went up for the header on the set piece, but the ball was deflected and went towards the left edge of the box.
Lozano jumped to the ball the fastest and re-directed it into the upper left corner with his weaker foot, and Peruvian goalkeeper Pedro Gallese never saw it heading there.
It was a fitting finish to a game that was quite sloppy throughout. Neither nation really established a foot in this game, and quality chances for both sides were scarce.
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Mexico had just one shot on target – which was the winner – off of seven shots as Peru mustered zero shots on target on nine attempts.
Possession narrowly went Peru’s way 51% to 49%; Peru logged more passes with 442 compared to Mexico’s 414; and Mexico had the better pass accuracy by an extremely slim margin at 77% to 76%.
Though the result doesn’t carry any substance as a friendly matchup, it’s a morale booster to Gerardo “Tata” Martino’s squad that will be competing in Group C with Argentina, Poland and Saudi Arabia at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar in November.
Peru, however, missed out on World Cup qualification after losing to Australia in the playoff rounds.
Next up for Mexico is a friendly against Colombia on Tuesday while Peru will take on El Salvador on the same day. Mexico’s game against Colombia will be held at Levi’s Stadium, home of the San Francisco 49ers, as part of the team’s “MexTour Sendoff Series” before the World Cup.
