Oribe Peralta (left) and Javier Hernandez (right) will be counted on to energize the offense during Mexico qualifying campaign for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. (Photo: Mexsport)
MEXICO CITY – Juan Carlos Osorio’s tenure as Mexico head coach will begin much in the same way that of Ricardo Ferretti – the four-game interim manager -- ended.
For a pair of upcoming World Cup qualifiers, the 53-year-old named Thursday a 25-player roster, which included 10 of the 11 starters from the Tricolor’s 3-2 win over the United States in the CONCACAF Cup last month.
Featured in the selection are the three scorers from the October 10 match that earned the Mexicans a place in the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup: Paul Aguilar, Javier Hernandez and Oribe Peralta.
Hernandez, 27, has been in scintillating form for Bayer Leverkusen, scoring four goals in as many 2015/16 UEFA Champions League outings for the German power.
Peralta’s performances have helped Club America excel domestically and internationally this season. The 31-year-old forward has netted seven times in 14 Liga MX Apertura outings for the second-place Aguilas, while tallying once in defense of their Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League title.
Mexico will open its bid for a 2018 FIFA World Cup berth in the fourth round of CONCACAF qualifying at home against Group A-rival El Salvador on November 13. Four days after that meeting in the Estadio Azteca, the Gold Cup champion will visit Honduras in San Pedro Sula.
MEXICO ROSTER
(World Cup Qualifying: November 13, 2015, home v El Salvador; November 17, 2015, away v Honduras)
GOALKEEPERS: Moises Muñoz (Club America), Guillermo Ochoa (Malaga/Spain), Alfredo Talavera (Toluca)
DEFENDERS: Paul Aguilar (Club America), Oswaldo Alanis (Guadalajara), Hugo Ayala (Tigres), Luis Fuentes (Pumas), Miguel Layun (Porto/Portugal), Hector Moreno (PSV Eindhoven/Netherlands), Diego Reyes (Real Sociedad/Spain), Jorge Torres Nilo (Tigres)
MIDFIELDERS: Javier Aquino (Tigres), Alejandro Castro (Pumas), Jesus Manuel Corona (Porto/Portugal), Jurgen Damm (Tigres), Jonathan Dos Santos (Villareal/Spain), Carlos Esquivel (Toluca), Andres Guardado (PSV Eindhoven/Netherlands), Hector Herrera (Porto/Portugal), Carlos Peña (Leon), Jose Juan Vazquez (Leon)
FORWARDS: Javier Hernandez (Bayer Leverkusen/Germany), Raul Jimenez (Benfica/Portugal), Oribe Peralta (Club America), Carlos Vela (Real Sociedad/Spain)