Mexico secures a winning start to the World Cup; Quiniones: I must thank my teammates for their efforts in securing the 3 points.

Goals from Quiniones and Raul Jimenez secured a 2-0 victory for Mexico in their opening Group A match of the 2026 World Cup. Quiniones expressed his delight at contributing to the win and emphasized the importance of his teammates' efforts in securing the three points.

In the 9th minute, Quiniones received a pass from Eric Lira and fired a shot into the net, giving Mexico a 1-0 lead. In the 50th minute of the second half, Brian Gutierrez was brought down by South African midfielder Yaya Citor while dribbling forward, and the referee showed Citor a red card.

In the 67th minute, Roberto Alvarado delivered a cross from the right wing, and Raul Jimenez headed the ball into the net, extending Mexico's lead to 2-0.

Ultimately, Mexico defeated South Africa 2-0 at the Aztec Stadium, successfully starting their World Cup journey with a victory.

"I am really happy and excited to score my first goal in the World Cup, especially in a spectacular stadium and in front of such passionate fans," said 29-year-old Quiniones.

“Equally important, I must also thank my teammates for their hard work in securing these 3 points. We have felt the support of the fans over the past few days. We are a united team, and that was fully demonstrated in the game.”

Mexican winger Roberto Alvarado said, "It feels so wonderful, it's indescribable. This has always been my dream, including playing at this level in front of my home stadium and fans. Our game plan was to apply pressure, but then we slowed down a bit. Maybe we could have done better in terms of patience and ball control."

“I was thrilled to see Raul Jimenez score. At halftime, he told me to cross the ball to him. I didn’t hesitate at all because I knew it would be very dangerous to send the ball to that position. Thank God, I provided the assist, and Raul Jimenez scored.”

In addition, Mexico coach Javier Aguirre said, "Raul Jimenez said in an interview that this World Cup must belong to him, and he has had a dream start."

“In the past, he always lived in the shadow of others, but in this game, he was a starter for this team. And he fully deserves all of this.”

Image source: Internet