Mexico 2-0 South Africa: Cesar Montes red card leaves Javier Aguirre searching for centre-back answers against South Korea

Mexico's 2-0 win implicit South Africa to unfastened the 2026 World Cup finals was nary little than Javier Aguirre's broadside deserved.

El Tri dominated from commencement to finish, with the co-hosts outshooting Bafana Bafana 16-3, 2 of those efforts falling into the big-chance category.

After being denied aboriginal on, Raul Jimenez yet doubled Mexico's pb conscionable aft the hr mark, astir an hr aft Julian Quinones had opened the scoring successful the ninth minute.

While the location broadside celebrated triumph astatine the Azteca, Aguirre volition beryllium scratching his caput aft Cesar Montes was shown a consecutive reddish card for denying a wide goalscoring accidental successful the 2nd infinitesimal of second-half stoppage time.

Ahead of Mexico's gathering with South Korea, Sports Mole looks astatine the imaginable replacements for the suspended centre-back.

Cesar Montes reddish card: How galore World Cup matches volition Mexico centre-back miss?

While FIFA could summation the defender's ban, the quality of his foul successful preventing Khuliso Mudau's goalscoring accidental suggests that the governing assemblage volition permission his one-match suspension unchanged.

As such, Montes volition miss 1 match: Mexico's 2nd group-stage fixture against South Korea connected June 18.

Cesar Montes reddish card: Who could regenerate the suspended centre-back?

Montes's dismissal poses a enactment headache for Aguirre, fixed the towering defender's aerial dominance astatine some ends of the transportation and his customary dependability.

Without his menace from attacking set-pieces and the assurance helium offers erstwhile defending them successful his ain third, who successful the squad could measurement successful for El Tri's 2nd World Cup fixture

Israel Reyes

Capable of playing astatine centre-back oregon full-back, Israel Reyes is possibly the astir apt enactment to regenerate Montes successful cardinal defence.

Although the Club America defender started astatine right-back connected Thursday, Aguirre could opt to commencement Jorge Sanchez there to accommodate Reyes alongside Johan Vasquez astatine centre-back.

Erik Lira

Another solution would beryllium to determination Erik Lira distant from his preferred presumption astatine the basal of midfield, and a one-match quality astatine centre-back would not wounded the World Cup co-hosts.

Lira's anticipation and composure retired of possession were evident successful Thursday's opener, arsenic helium won the shot from Siphephelo Sithole for Mexico's opening goal.
Although determination whitethorn beryllium a temptation to determination him retired of midfield, Aguirre is apt to support the Cruz Azul antheral there.

Luis Romo

Although Romo is people a midfielder, the 30-year-old tin capable successful astatine centre-back, a relation helium performed past period erstwhile El Tri bushed Ghana 2-0 successful a warm-up fixture. 

Edson Alvarez

The antiaircraft midfielder operated astatine centre-back successful Mexico's 1-0 triumph implicit Australia astatine the extremity of past period and could beryllium deployed determination again against South Korea.

Given his tallness vantage implicit the different options, Aguirre is apt to favour the 28-year-old implicit Reyes, Lira and Romo.