Andonovski of the United States says the job is not done, as Mexico faces an inescapable mission to keep 2023 hopes alive

July 10 - USA coach Vlatko Andonovski is happy his side have qualified for next year's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, but he's very clear when he says "work is not finished yet".

That job is to win the Concacaf W Championship and secure a spot at the 2024 Paris Olympics which will come with a championship win.

USA are top of Group A after two games with 8 goals and are yet to concede. Their last game is against Mexico who, perhaps surprisingly, have lost their first two games and are yet to score a goal.

Andonovski isn't entirely surprised by Mexico's results, but at the same time he's wary of a fierce Mexican response in front of a home crowd and a set of players who have unquestionable abilities even if the results to date have not been reflected. this.

"I wasn't surprised by Mexico's results. It's a tough group. All games could go in any direction and we saw that with Mexico's results," said Andonovski (photo below).

"Mexico are a good opponent and they will want to salvage everything they can while finding a way to qualify for the World Cup.

"We will build on the way we played against Jamaica... our timing and momentum was good. For lack of possession we have to focus and they have good players, like (Houston Dash's Maria ) Sanchez, who can punish you if you give them time and space."

"Mexico have something to play for and it's exciting. We want them to come to us," Andonovski said.

That's probably the only thing he can guarantee with Mexico coach Monica Vergara saying it was "most important" that his team came away with something.

For Mexico, this is a must-have game to keep the door open to qualifying for the 2023 World Cup. Both teams from the third-place group advance to the Cup play-off tournament of the world to be held in New Zealand next February.

Mexico have the quality and Vergara (pictured below) was visibly frustrated with the first two games where his side dominated possession but couldn't break down physical defenses.

The key will be to get your audience behind them and look for ways to use their possession to threaten more meaningfully closer to the goal. But Mexico's hopes are hanging by a thread against an American team that was emphatic and imposing in every move.

Andonovski acknowledged the impact Mexican fans could have. "The fact that we have to be here with little support from our fans is a good experience because that's what it will be like when we get to the World Cup," he said.

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"It's a game we've been looking forward to with a lot of fans creating a hostile environment. We'll see how our young players do."

Mexico and USA have faced each other six times in CWC competition, most recently in 2018 when USA won 6-0. They only played Mexico once in the CWC, Mexico won 2-1. If they ever needed history to repeat itself, it's Monday night in Monterrey.

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