Ochoa set to make history with sixth World Cup appearance

Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa is about to make history. He will be the first goalkeeper to play in six World Cup finals after being named in Mexico’s squad for the tournament.

The 40-year-old currently plays for AEL Limassol in Cyprus. He joins the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo from Portugal and Argentina’s Lionel Messi, who will also play in their sixth World Cup.

But unlike Ronaldo and Messi, who are key players for their teams, Ochoa might not play much. He has fallen down the lineup in recent years.

Ochoa first played in a World Cup in Germany back in 2006. He is one of the star players in the squad, which also includes forwards Raul Jimenez and Santiago Gimenez. Jimenez plays for Fulham in the Premier League, while Gimenez is with AC Milan in Serie A.

New Faces in the Squad

Two players in the squad, Alvaro Fidalgo and Julian Quinones, have become important to the team after getting naturalized. Fidalgo was born in Spain and Quinones in Colombia. They both have been key players for coach Javier Aguirre.

There is also Gilberto Mora, a promising 17-year-old midfielder. He is set to become the youngest player ever to represent Mexico in a World Cup.

For Aguirre, who is 67 years old, this will be his third World Cup as coach. He was in charge during the tournaments in 2002 and 2010.

In both of those World Cups, Mexico did not make it past the group stage. This time, the team hopes to do better. They want to match the success of the teams from 1970 and 1986, when Mexico also hosted the tournament and reached the quarter-finals.

Mexico will co-host the World Cup with Canada and the US. They will kick off the tournament with the opening match against South Africa on June 11 in Mexico City.

After that, they will face South Korea on June 18 and finish the group stage against the Czech Republic on June 24.