On the phone, Ricardo Antonio La Volpe answered a call from La Opinion and told them that, in his analysis, goalkeeper Memo Ochoa should not be included. being called up for the World Cup, even though he understands his importance in the locker room, as well as questioning the call-up of Santiago Gimenez, the AC Milan striker.

La Volpe was consulted by this newspaper about his perspective on the World Cup roster that will be announced this Monday with the players who participate in Liga MX, but he warned from his analysis that Memo Ochoa has no place and that Santiago Gimenez, as long as he surprises everyone with the remaining matches for AC Milan in Serie A.

“Sometimes age is difficult; I think one has the knowledge of what the goalkeeper position is. He is a shot-stopper, which means he needs reflexes, he needs a lot of reaction time, he needs power, he needs speed, and at a certain age you lose many of those things,” explained La Volpe, who was a World Cup goalkeeper for Argentina in 1978.

The former coach of the Mexican national team, with his experience in the roster for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, clearly stated who would take Andres Gudino, Cruz Azul's goalkeeper, instead of Memo Ochoa: "So, if it's because of his influence in the locker room, I'd say he wants to take him. Under other circumstances, I don't know."

—Would you take him?

No, I think there are young players; for example, when Cruz Azul needed Gudino, I liked him a lot. Gudino performed well; he's young. I'm telling you, Tala is going to be the starter.

—But sometimes you have to make drastic decisions, and with Memo Ochoa, would you have to sacrifice heart?

I think I know the position. He's not a goalkeeper who comes out of his goal; he never was. He was always a shot-stopper, as I said before.

—In this case, if you were the coach, who would take you to the World Cup as the three goalkeepers?

I already told you,for me it would be Tala, who I have no doubt will be the starter, after what happened to Malagon. Then there's Acevedo with his experience, and I'll say it again, I liked Gudino's performance.

La Volpe casts doubt on Santiago Gimenez's presence

In the conversation, La Volpe also took the time to discuss who the forwards should be for the World Cup, and in this case, he cast doubt on Santiago Gimenez of AC Milan due to his recent return to action. Instead, he would take Raul Jimenez, Armando Gonzalez, Julian Quinones, and German Berterame.

“The 'Ant' Gonzalez could certainly go. Without a doubt, those two players would be with Raul. I think they're the ones who can allow him to play with two strikers or play an extra player on the wing, right? One is a striker like Quinones, who can play a little bit on the wing, and then there's Berterame.

La Volpe added: “But don't forget that he also has Gilberto Mora, and they're putting him in as "A midfielder, when Mora, I saw him in the U-23s, he's a second striker. That's where he really shone, that's where he stood out impressively, because when they put him in midfield, well, he's that loose player behind the defense."

—And Santi Jimenez, would you take him?

Santi, I don't know where he's playing anymore, obviously, but I don't know if he's fully recovered from his injury; he hasn't played in a while.

—So, taking him would be a doubt, right? It would be a gamble to take him?

Yes, unless he plays now for what's left, which, I repeat, these next 15 or 20 days. But I don't think you're going to call up a player just to put him in.