Thomas Tuchel predicts "karma" will be on England's side when they face Mexico at the Estadio Azteca, site of Diego Maradona's famous "Hand of God" goal. On Sunday, England will face the World Cup hosts in a huge round of 16 match at the stadium they last visited during the 1986 tournament. It was there that their memorable quarter-final clash with a Maradona-inspired Argentina team took place, with the eventual champions triumphing after scoring two very different goals. Maradona's first goal, dubbed 'the hand of God', was scored when the player hit the ball over Peter Shilton with his hand, which went unnoticed by the referee. His second goal, four minutes later, was dubbed the 'goal of the century' after five English players ran 50 meters. Mexico has never lost a World Cup match at this iconic stadium (8 wins, 2 draws), winning the last six games in a row. This will be the eleventh match they have played at this venue in the history of the tournament, making it the most visited venue by a single team in the history of the competition. Despite El Tri's fearless record, Tuchel believes his side are owed a victory at a venue that England see as one of the greatest injustices of the World Cup. "Of course I remember Maradona's World Cup. Two goals against England. One with a dribble and one that wouldn't have gone through today," Tuchel told reporters. "Not only for the English, al
e even for me. I had no connection with it, but it meant something. "This will reward us. Karma will come back for us. We will turn it around. "It's an iconic stadium. It's an iconic match, playing against Mexico in Mexico. It will be against the whole country, the energy of the whole stadium in their country." Mexico's round of 32 opponents, Ecuador, complained of disruptions to travel plans before their 2-0 defeat as fans set off fireworks outside their team hotel. Asked about the possibility of England facing similar problems, Tuchel smiled: "We expect it. What can we do? Maybe we'll bring earplugs! I expect everything." Perhaps a bigger obstacle for England is the altitude, as the Azteca is more than 7,000 feet above sea level. Wembley Stadium is just 187 feet above sea level. Experts have warned that England's players may experience more fatigue than in previous matches, and Tuchel admits there is no way to counter the effect as FIFA does not allow teams to travel to host cities on match days. "We will go one night before. That makes sense. The ball will fly differently. Maybe it will fly five yards further. It's just hard. We just need experience," Tuchel said. "The recommendation is to either arrive 10 days in advance - which is too long for us - or at the last minute, which is not allowed. "We've talked to teams that are doing this and they say they're traveling very, very late in the day
and during the match if they don't have time to adapt. We need to find a mix in between. It will remain as a defect."Players
Tuchel predicts England will receive 'karma' at Azteca after Maradona's 'Hand of God' goal
Thomas Tuchel believes that England will face 'karma' during the match against Mexico at the Estadio Azteca, where in 1986 Diego Maradona scored the famous 'Hand of God' goal.
03 lipca 2026Biało-Czerwoni
Thomas Tuchel predicts "karma" will be on England's side when they face Mexico at the Estadio Azteca, site of Diego Maradona's famous "Hand of God" goal. On Sunday, England will face the World Cup hosts in a huge round of 16 match at the stadium they last visited during the 1986 tournament. It was there that their memorable quarter-final clash with a Maradona-inspired Argentina team took place, with the eventual champions triumphing after scoring two very different goals. Maradona's first goal, dubbed 'the hand of God', was scored when the player hit the ball over Peter Shilton with his hand, which went unnoticed by the referee. His second goal, four minutes later, was dubbed the 'goal of the century' after five English players ran 50 meters. Mexico has never lost a World Cup match at this iconic stadium (8 wins, 2 draws), winning the last six games in a row. This will be the eleventh match they have played at this venue in the history of the tournament, making it the most visited venue by a single team in the history of the competition. Despite El Tri's fearless record, Tuchel believes his side are owed a victory at a venue that England see as one of the greatest injustices of the World Cup. "Of course I remember Maradona's World Cup. Two goals against England. One with a dribble and one that wouldn't have gone through today," Tuchel told reporters. "Not only for the English, al
e even for me. I had no connection with it, but it meant something. "This will reward us. Karma will come back for us. We will turn it around. "It's an iconic stadium. It's an iconic match, playing against Mexico in Mexico. It will be against the whole country, the energy of the whole stadium in their country." Mexico's round of 32 opponents, Ecuador, complained of disruptions to travel plans before their 2-0 defeat as fans set off fireworks outside their team hotel. Asked about the possibility of England facing similar problems, Tuchel smiled: "We expect it. What can we do? Maybe we'll bring earplugs! I expect everything." Perhaps a bigger obstacle for England is the altitude, as the Azteca is more than 7,000 feet above sea level. Wembley Stadium is just 187 feet above sea level. Experts have warned that England's players may experience more fatigue than in previous matches, and Tuchel admits there is no way to counter the effect as FIFA does not allow teams to travel to host cities on match days. "We will go one night before. That makes sense. The ball will fly differently. Maybe it will fly five yards further. It's just hard. We just need experience," Tuchel said. "The recommendation is to either arrive 10 days in advance - which is too long for us - or at the last minute, which is not allowed. "We've talked to teams that are doing this and they say they're traveling very, very late in the day
and during the match if they don't have time to adapt. We need to find a mix in between. It will remain as a defect."CMS Newsroom
