FIFA World Cup: Magical strike by Mexico’s most-loved striker | Football News
3 min readMexico CityJun 12, 2026 06:40 AM IST A banner outside the stadium read: “When Raul Jimenez plays, Raul Jimenez is the hero.” He is the most loved Mexican footballer, the one the crowd spares of insults even on a bad day, the face that peers at you from a thousand billboards. In the World Cup’s opening against South Africa, every time his shot was blocked (at least thrice) or it evaded the target, the audience sighed in disbelief. And whenever he was fouled, the offender would get abused. The moment of glory—it was inevitable that it arrived to cap off a memorable afternoon—finally came in the 67th minute, a powerful and precise header to the near post. In a game that saw three red cards, it was Jimenez who initiated the move with a scything pass to Julian Quinones in midfield, whose twinkling right foot found Roberto Alvardo. The midfielder paused, scanned the options, met the popping eyes of Jimenez and spun a gorgeous cross, through the well-manned box. Jimenez, waiting to pounce, …
