Fiji vs. Mexico: Score and Reaction from 2016 Olympic Men's Soccer

Erick Gutierrez's four second-half goals helped Mexico beat Fiji 5-1 in Group C at the Fonte Nova Arena on Sunday at the 2016 Rio Olympics. His goals cancelled out Roy Krishna's shock opener for Fiji in the first half. 

Carlos Salcedo also got his name on the scoresheet after the break, as El Tri showed their credentials for winning a second straight gold medal.

The defending Olympic champions have now seized control of Group C with Germany still to play.

Veteran striker Oribe Peralta helped lead the line for El Tri, according to FIFA's official site:

The same source also detailed Fiji's starting XI:

It was unfancied Fiji who actually came closest to scoring early on. ESPN FC's Tom Marshall detailed the chance and chided Mexico's initial struggles on the ball:

The early chance was a warning sign Mexico didn't heed. It was 33-year-old goalkeeper Alfredo Talavera who best summed up his team's sloppy start when his poor handling allowed skipper Krishna to head home for a shock 1-0 Fiji lead.

Mexico needed to get jet-heeled winger Hirving Lozano more involved and exploit the natural width in their squad to stretch a resolute Fiji defence.

Yet, their passing remained static and unimaginative. It didn't help that the off-the-ball movement was less than perceptive.

Mexico's lack of attacking impetus was perfectly illustrated by this stat from Marshall:

El Tri had to show more intent once the second half began. It was Gutierrez who duly obliged, turning the ball over the line after some controversy in the build-up when it appeared the ball had gone out of play.

The attacking midfielder struck again moments later as Mexico finally upped the pace in attack. Gutierrez then completed his hat-trick to put the game beyond doubt.

Salcedo applied gloss to the scoreline as Mexico ruthlessly pursued as many goals as they could get. Gutierrez was only too happy to fire in his fourth and his nation's fifth soon after.

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Afterwards, Gutierrez took justified pride in his day and praised the significance of his opening goal, per FIFA.com: “It’s very special. I’ve never scored a goal for the national side. It’s the first time I’ve ever found the target in a Mexico shirt, whether at youth level or for the first team, which is why this result means so much to me.”

In the same interview he also made reference to the choice words coach Raul Gutierrez used with El Tri trailing at the break: “Let me put it this way: he made reference to our places within the team.”

While they laboured through the first half, Mexico offered a timely and ominous reminder of their class after the break. This is a squad loaded with technical quality and intelligence in forward areas.

Those attributes make them strong contenders alongside Brazil and Germany in the race for gold.