#confecuo

MEXICO CITY --  On Friday, I once again analyzed El Tri’s 32-man list for the upcoming friendlies in California and New Jersey, World Cup Qualifiers and Confecup. In the last hours, I’ve gotten asked many times who the nine cuts will be, and my answer has always been the same, “It’s going to be tough.”

One quick conclusion I can make is that Osorio has more weapons this time around compared to the Centenario squad which included players like Carlos “Gullit” Pena, Jorge Torres Nilo, Yasser Corona, and Candido Ramirez.

The fact that this time around Osorio has more weapons makes it tougher to nail down the right 23-player squad. Taking into account that Rafa Marquez is coming back from a serious back injury, that has kept him off the fields for the past two months, we can conclude that in the 32-man list, there are 20 players with sure spots, leaving three spots still wide-open.

I still have Rafa with a serious question mark, so he’s not part of the 20-man list, which is as follows.

JJ Corona

Memo Ochoa

Tala

Alanis

Araujo

Moreno

“Flaco” Reyes

Luis Reyes

Carlos Salcedo

Jona

Guardado

HH

Layun

Tecatito

Gio

Marco

CH14

Raul

Vela

Chucky

Perhaps Osorio already has a defined 23-man list, but I think it’ll be risky to consider Rafa as part of the final list. What if he falls injured in the Confecup? Not only that, what about Guardado, who has had a tendency to fall injured with the national team? Who are your replacements in this scenario?

Let’s return to the game against Chile, with Rafa on the bench, Osorio went with Jesus Dueñas as the midfielder joining Guardado and Herrera. Luckily, this time around, Osorio has a player like Jona, who could perfectly slot in the midfield and give results, as was the case in the Costa Rica game held in March.

Players vying for those three spots include players like Oribe, Jesus Molina, Dueñas, Aquino, “Guti”, Orbelin and Damm.

Let’s say Rafa makes it, that leaves two spots. The leading candidates to take those spots could likely be Molina and Aquino. With this decision, players like Herrera, Layun and Gio will have to respond when given minutes.  

Dueñas, who so far has been brilliant in the Liguilla, might go on to finish as the best Mexican performer in the playoffs. It will be unfair to leave him off the list, but it’s a strong possibility because I do see Osorio using a player like Molina against New Zealand and even against Russia. Also, I think Aquino is one of Osorio’s favorites because he has played in Europe, and  his experience will be fundamental in the dressing room.

You can see Orbelin and Guti at the same level. Every time I go to Pachuca, we talk with the journos about who’s the best of the two. Of course there’s a pro-Pachuca opinion in Estadio Hidalgo, but there’s always room for objectivity. I always say that they’re different; there’s qualities in their game that makes them different from the rest of midfielders in Mexico.

But before I delve more into this comparison, let me say that Rodolfo Pizarro should be in the Gold Cup, and if he continues on the streak he’s currently on, I don’t see why he shouldn’t be one of the main players in El Tri. He’s a player that can take away Gio’s place in the national team.

Orbelin is a player that plays the game a lot like HH. They can cover the whole field, and after the game is done, they look ready for the next 90 minutes. Guti is a midfielder who knows how to protect the ball; his passing is precise and clinical whenever he finds teammates in open space, just ask “Chucky” Lozano. I feel that Guti is an excellent replacement to have on the bench, especially if players like Rafa and Guardado go down.

If you asked me to pick one of the following four -- Orbelin, Dueñas, Molina and Guti. I would select Guti, the 21-year-old Pachuca captain, who just lifted the Concachampions trophy after beating the unstoppable Tigres.

In the 20-man list, Guardado doesn’t have a replacement, and that replacement could be Guti, who’s left-footed and can play the same role as “El Principito.”

But who knows! Osorio might surprise us and take Guti, Rafa and Aquino, but it’s looking like, as of right now, that it could be Rafa, Molina, Aquino. And if that’s the case, July could be a special month with Pizarro, Orbelin, Dueñas and Guti leading El Tri’s midfield, which is not bad when you think about it.

Also, let’s not forget, there’s no complete certainty that Rafa will make the trip to Russia this summer.