West Ham midfielder Edson Alvarez was distraught as he left the pitch just 30 minutes into Mexico’s Copa America opener.
Alvarez was captaining the side for the first time at a major tournament, but the match came to a premature end for him.
While sprinting back against Jamaica, at Houston’s NRG Stadium, the Hammers midfielder went down clutching his left hamstring.
There was no other player around him when he went down and he had to be helped off the pitch.
“With Edson, we’re going to wait a couple of days to give him an examination and know well what he has,” Mexico manager Jaime ‘Jimmy’ Lozano said in a postgame news conference.
“Obviously as it is with any other player, the intention is not to risk anything. He felt something in his leg.”
Read more on Copa America
It is heartbreaking for Alvarez, who spoke on Friday about his pride at captaining Mexico at the tournament.
“I really want this to start, [so] tomorrow I can go out with the captain’s armband, listen to the Mexican national anthem in front of all the people,” he said. “It’s something I think about and get goosebumps.”
Mexico went on to win the clash with Jamaica 1-0, thanks Gerardo Arteaga’s 69th-minute strike.
Alvarez’s West Ham teammate and Jamaica international Michail Antonio had seen his header disallowed by VAR just 19 minutes earlier.
Mexico boss Lozano added: “It’s not easy to recover and remain balanced after your captain exits so rapidly… but it seems to me that the team stabilised quickly.”
Mexico’s next Copa America group match is against Venezuela on Thursday.
News Summary:
- West Ham star Edson Alvarez leaves pitch in tears just 30 minutes into Copa America opener
- Check all news and articles from the latest Football updates.