Midfielder Andres Guardado spared Mexico’s blushes with a scintillating second-half goal to earn his team a 1-0 win over Angola in a pre-World Cup friendly on Thursday.
The long-haired Deportivo La Coruna player struck in the 52nd minute after being given space out wide by a pinpoint cross from Alberto Medina.
Guardado unleashed a rasping left-foot strike that was parried away by Angola goalkeeper Joao Mamona Luis Lama, but the Mexican followed up and buried the ball in the left side of the net to send the sellout crowd of 70,000 into a frenzy.
Mexico, who play hosts South Africa in the opening game of the World Cup next month, dominated the match with Guardado, Medina and the experienced Cuauhtemoc Blanco prominent in attack, but they squandered a string of chances against a team who failed to qualify for the World Cup and were also denied by some superb saves by Lama.
Following their 1-0 win over Senegal on Monday, Mexico at least wrapped up their US tour on a triumphant note and will return home to host fellow World Cup qualifiers Chile tomorrow, before they head to South Africa.
Mexico are in Group A at the World Cup finals along with the hosts, France and Uruguay.
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