Hernandez wants to win Confederations Cup for 'all the Mexican people'

Mexico ended the Confederations Cup's group stage on a positive note. El Tri defeated Russia, the tournament's host, 2-1 at Kazan Arena and advanced to the semi-finals with seven points from three games. The unbeaten run includes a hard-fought draw against Portugal and a victory over New Zealand, and the national team's six goals came from six separate sources.

Speaking after Mexico's win against Russia, Javier Hernandez, affectionately known as Chicharito, refused to attribute the result to just one thing, and spoke about how El Tri is playing for its footballers, their families, and the patria.

"It wouldn't be very fair to just say one thing," Hernandez said, according to ESPN FC's Tom Marshall. "Here, the goal scorer isn't the hero and the player that makes an error the villain. Here we play, we run we work our asses off. We want to win to bring joy to ourselves, to our families, and all the Mexican people. The tactical and technical side are different, the opponent is also an influence. If there was a book and it was an exact science, everyone would want it."

Hernandez, Mexico's all-time leading scorer, produced an equaliser in El Tri's draw against Portugal that marked the 18th international goal which he scored using his head. He played no part in the triumph over New Zealand, but was on the pitch for the entirety of the group-stage finale.

In the semi-finals, Mexico will meet the winner of Group B, which will be one of Chile, Germany, Australia, and Cameroon.