How England's nemesis low block could be secret weapon against Mexico

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Thomas Tuchel's England side have struggled to break down teams who emply a low block By Umir Irfan Football tactics correspondent Published 11 minutes ago When England take to the field to face Mexico at the famous Azteca Stadium in their World Cup last-16 tie, they know they will be playing the conditions as well as their opponents. It's no secret that the altitude in Mexico City is a problem for visiting teams, with the Azteca sitting around 7,220ft above sea level. It means that England players may experience muscle fatigue earlier in the game than usual, with less oxygen in the air making it more difficult to breathe. And it is in those conditions that Thomas Tuchel's side will have to solve the puzzle that is Javier Aguirre's impressive Mexico team, who have won every game they have played at the tournament so far without conceding a goal. With so much at stake, England will be looking for any advantage to progress into the World Cup quarter final and while the low block has posed problems for the Three Lions during the tournament, could Tuchel now turn to it and use it to his team's benefit? BBC offers 'Stay Up or Catch Up' for England v Mexico Published 2 days ago Image source, Getty Images Image caption, The Mexico City Stadium - the Azteca - sits 7,220ft above sea level Facing Mexico is a tactical conundrum for even the best of coaches given the number of approaches they have used in the tournament so far – switching between four and five defenders, as well as alternating between dominating the ball higher up the pitch and defending deep to counter attack. There are, however, a few things a coach can control prior to a game irrespective of the opponent and Tuchel might, in the words of Bayern Munich's assistant coach Rene Maric, choose to 'set the board' in order to outmaneuver the Mexicans. "You can choose your defending strategy without regards to your opposition and be somewhat successful; barring huge differences in quality you will not be able to do the same offensively," said Maric. "Basically, the defending team sets the board and the attacking team plays the game. For me, 'proactive' means acting with an intention of creating specific situations. This is harder to do when attacking" And knowing that Mexico have a variety of styles they can play, 'setting the board' by taking a certain defensive approach could force their hand into playing a style that England can counter. That is where the low block comes in. Image caption, Ghana dictated England's approach with their compact 4-5-1 block England have struggled when faced with the low block during the tournament - most notably against a stubborn Ghana side who ground out a 0-0 draw with the Three Lions during the group stage. So when looking to 'set the board' to give England the advantage in the last 16, it helps to identify Mexico's strengths with an idea on how to blunt them. Mexico have throughout the tournament shown impressive qua