It took a strong second-half performance from El Tri to remain unbeaten at the Confederations Cup, but Juan Carlos Osorio’s side did just that.
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Mexico topped New Zealand, 2-1, on Wednesday at Fisht Olympic Stadium in Sochi behind a pair of goals from Raul Jimenez and Oribe Peralta after halftime.
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The victory pulls Mexico level on points (4) at the top of Group A with Portugal, while hosts Russia sit behind the two leading nations on three points. The All Whites have been eliminated from reaching the last four after accumulating zero points through their first two fixtures.
New Zealand went ahead three minutes prior to the halftime break when Chris Wood slotted home from inside the Mexico penalty area to make it 1-0.
However, Jimenez leveled the match up just nine minutes into the second stanza before Peralta grabbed all three points for El Tri with nearly a quarter-hour remaining.
Group A play will close out on June 24 when Mexico takes on Russia and Portugal meets New Zealand to decide which two nations will reach the knockout round.