World Cup 2014 Brazil » Group A » Live commentary: Mexico - Cameroon 1:0

Endgame Summary:
Mexico deservedly takes the second match in group A against a Cameroon side, who showed too little on the offensive end to be competitive. The Africans benefited from major misjudgments by the referee and his assistants in the first half, otherwise the game might have already been out of hand after the two denied goals by Dos Santos. In the end the awful performance by Roldán gladly didn't change the outcome, but the men in black remain the focal point in the early stages of the World Cup. That's it for the first game today, we hope you enjoyed the coverage!

It doesn't matter though because seconds later the final whistle blows!

The stoppage time is four minutes while Miguel Herrera takes additional seconds from the clock with his last substitution.

That might have been the one chance for the Africans to pull off the draw.

So long the Central Americans have little trouble with the efforts of Cameroon.

At least the Africans are now in the driving seat and apply continued pressure on the opponent for the first time today.

The Fenerbahçe man adds more attacking options to the African side as Finke searches for the equalizer.

Dany Nounkeu (Cameroon) is shown a yellow card
The full back takes down Marco Fabián with a late challenge and is booked.

Benjamin Moukandjo delivers a fine cross into the box, but Eto'o finds himself surrounded by defenders and can't secure the ball.

The Lions try to apply more pressure on the Mexicans but they clearly lack potential.

The Lions have to think more offensive now, but they have shown little in that regard so far.

Goooal for Mexico, 1:0 by Oribe Peralta
Herrera muscles himself through the defense and finds Dos Santos in the penalty area. The initial effort is blocked by Charles Itandje, but the the striker picks up the rebound and scores.

Héctor Moreno (Mexico) is shown a yellow card
After some harsh challenges from the African side, the referee chooses to show the first card to Mexico. But it's justified as No 15 takes down Mbia right in front of the penalty area.

The Lions remain passive overall and can't even get out in transition. It looks like they would live with the scoreless draw right now.

Oribe Peralta has to score here! The striker is on the end of a fluid combination into the penalty box, but can't beat Charles Itandje from a tight angle.

Can Mexico shake off the horrible officiating in this second half? In theory the favorite just has to continue where they left off and good things should happen.

Roldán is at the sideline talking to Miguel Herrera, who keeps complaining about the decisions of the referee. It's surely not an easy task to remain calm for the Mexicans with all those misjudgments so far.

We have another controversial play as Stéphane Mbia elbows his opponent. It looked intentional and hard, yet no card is shown.

Sadly, the referees are the focal point again. Yesterday Nishimura gifted Brazil a penalty after a Fred dive and today Mexico could and should be up 2-0.

Another Mexican goal is whistled down! Unbelievable! A corner slips through Giovani Dos Santos at the far post and he heads it home, but the referee apparently has seen an imaginary foul.

The rain is getting heavier, it's pouring in Natal!

What a chance for Eto'o! Assou-Ekotto breaks through the left side and finds his captain with a well-timed delivery. The veteran aims for the left corner but misses just wide. The ball might have even touched woodwork here, it was really close.

... Choupo-Moting also scores with the assistant's flag up. This time it's the right decision though as serving Eto'o was clearly offside after the corner was initially defended and brought back into the box.

It seems like Sammy Eto'o has yet to touch the ball. Mexico is in complete control.

Cameroon does not look solid on the wings, they are giving away too much space for Aguilar and Layún.

The wet pitch is causing some trouble early on, but the sides will surely adopt gradually.

Aguilar has some space on the right side, but the cross is off the mark and past the goal line. It looked like Maza might have gotten a piece of it, but no corner is awarded.

Mexico is wearing their traditional green while Cameroon sports yellow jerseys.

Next to the veteran, the more intriguing player on the Cameroon side might be Stéphane Mbia, who blossomed in Sevilla this season and helped the Spanish outlet to win the Europa League. The Africans are surely no pushovers and in preparation for the World Cup they impressed with a 2-2 draw against one of the favorites in Germany. But the overwhelming odds are that the Lions will not come out of the group stage for the fifth straight time.

On the defensive side, Miguel Herrera once more relies on veteran Rafael Márquez. The captain is the lone centre back within the 3-5-2 system, but wingers Miguel Layún and Paul Aguilar will act as additional full backs on defense, essentially forming a back five.

The biggest problem of the Central Americans has been the ability to score goals despite much offensive talent. After a difficult year Chicharito got dumped to the bench for Oribe Peralta, the most successful striker in recent domestic competitions. The Santos Laguna man is certainly a player to watch today and will be joined up front by Giovani Dos Santos, who bounced around Europa after leaving Barca and now seems to have found a home in Villarreal.

Yesterday we had four goals, controversy, unconvincing hosts and a stubborn underdog. You can't ask for much more and we certainly hope today's matches will continue in similar fashion. It was assumed that Croatia and Mexico will likely battle out the second spot behind Brazil, so Miguel Herrera's team plays for a first advantage over the Eastern Europeans today and start the match as favorites.