Mexico picked up an opening night win at the 2024 Copa America on Saturday, but lost captain Edson Alvarez due to an apparent hamstring injury.
Alvarez left the eventual 1-0 victory over Jamaica at the half hour mark and was visibly seen in tears as he left the field. The West Ham United midfielder raced back to try and stop a Reggae Boyz counter attack before falling to the ground and grabbing his left hamstring.
He was captaining El Tri for the first time at a major tournament.
“With Edson, we’re going to wait a couple of days to give him an examination and know well what he has,” Mexico manager Jaime Lozano said in a postgame news conference. “Obviously as it is with any other player, the intention is not to risk anything. He felt something in his leg.”
“It’s not easy to recover and remain balanced after your captain exits so rapidly … but it seems to me that the team stabilized quickly,” Lozano added.
Mexico used a 69th minute winning goal from Gerardo Arteaga to claim three points at NRG Energy Stadium in Houston, Texas. El Tri out-possessed and outshot Jamaica in the match, forcing goalkeeper Jahmali Waite into eight saves.
Alvarez’s status for Mexico’s final group stage matches against Venezuela and Ecuador remains unknown. The 26-year-old excelled for West Ham this past season, scoring two goals and adding two assists in 42 combined appearances.
Alvarez was replaced by Luis Romo in Saturday’s match, who very well could remain in Lozano’s starting lineup going forward.
