La seleccion mexicana opened its final stretch of preparation for the 2026 World Cup on Friday, May 22, when it faced Ghana in an international friendly at Estadio Cuauhtémoc. The match kicked off at 22:00 hours in the United States and 20:00 hours in Mexico, giving Javier Aguirre’s staff a first live look at the group it has concentrated ahead of the final roster call.
The strongest sign of what Mexico may look like came from the back line. Raúl Rangel emerged as a possible starting goalkeeper, with Jorge Sánchez on the right side, Israel Reyes and César Montes in central defense and Jesús Gallardo at left back. That shape matters because Johan Vásquez has not yet joined the camp, which opens the door for Reyes to fill in at center back while the staff waits for the full group to report.
Edson Álvarez is already in camp, a notable addition after a difficult run in which injuries slowed him and his spell in Turkey with Fenerbahce did not end well. His presence gives Aguirre a player central to Mexico’s plans, especially at a point in the cycle when each training session and friendly is being used to narrow choices before the final squad is named.
For Mexico, the night in Puebla is less about the scoreboard than about answers. This is its antepenultimate friendly before the World Cup, and the staff is working with only part of its available talent while waiting for more players to join. César Montes finished his season in Russia and is now available, which adds stability to a defense that still has one open spot while Vásquez remains absent.
The tension is in that gap between what Mexico wants to test and what it can actually field right now. Aguirre’s staff can assess form, shape and chemistry against Ghana, but the lineup is still being built from pieces that are arriving at different times and from different seasons. The selections in Puebla may not be the final answer, but they are the clearest sign yet of who is ahead as Mexico moves toward World Cup 2026.
