PANAMA CITY — With Mexico closing out its 2016 campaign with a scoreless draw against Panama, manager Juan Carlos Osorio says it's been a good year for the national team- and the numbers back him up.
"It's been a positive year. This call-up, especially, we've enjoyed a lot. It was very productive. For the first time we had the 13 players from Europe and Giovani dos Santos." Osorio said at a news conference after Tuesday's 0-0 draw against Panama. "Today those who played contributed and once again generated international competition in the group. We hope that they might return to their clubs, keep being influential, get minutes and for the next cycle we'll be able to have something very similar."
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The draw takes Osorio to the best record for any Mexico manager in his first 17 games, with the Colombian boasting a mark of 13 wins, three draws and the 7-0 loss to Chile in the Copa America Centenario still the only blemish.
While the loss was a lopsided one, center back Nestor Araujo said he hopes that 2016 is remembered for more than the quarterfinal defeat in the summer tournament.
"I think the results have been good. The 7-0 hurt a lot for the fans, but we learned a lot from it," he said. "We’re trying to leave it behind. I know it’s not forgotten, but we’re focused on what’s coming up and trying to qualify for the World Cup."
Mexico has four points from its first two Hex matches after Tuesday's draw and a 2-1 win over the United States on Friday. It returns to competitive action in March, hosting Costa Rica and traveling to face Trinidad and Tobago.
