Tuchel Says Mexico Fans Have Been 'Friendly and Respectful' as England Prepares for Sunday's Azteca Kickoff

Since England arrived in Mexico City under riot police escort, the pre-match narrative has shifted considerably. Tuchel spoke to reporters Saturday evening and said the experience had been "nicer than I expected," a notable departure from the hostile atmosphere that prompted Ecuador to file a FIFA noise complaint after fans with loudspeakers, motorbikes, and car horns disrupted their sleep ahead of a last-32 tie Mexico won 2-0, according to BBC Sport.

Mexico's National Guard lined the entrance to England's hotel. Riot-gear police stood behind barriers on the road outside. FIFA put the security measures in place directly in response to Ecuador's complaint. Tuchel said the result was a quiet night. "We had no issues tonight and I think FIFA took care of the situation," he told reporters, per BBC Sport.

The manager acknowledged the altitude is a real factor, not just talking-point fodder. The Estadio Azteca sits at 7,220 feet above sea level, according to BBC Sport, and the LA Times puts it closer to 7,350 feet. Either way, the thinner air reduces oxygen intake per breath, raises heart rate, accelerates dehydration, and speeds up fatigue. Tuchel said he personally felt a slight headache through the day after arriving Saturday evening and slept worse than he had in the United States. "We feel it even if we don't train," he said.

England defender Marc Guehi told the BBC: "It's one of the great stadiums in soccer. Playing there is a blessing. Mexico is probably the favorite."

What Mexico Brings to This

The numbers are stark. According to Fox Sports, Mexico has played three of its four tournament games at the Azteca, winning all three by multiple goals for a combined 7-0 scoreline. Their overall competitive record at the stadium is 70-17-2. They have not lost a competitive home game there since a 2-1 defeat to Honduras in a September 2013 World Cup qualifier, per the LA Times.

More specifically to this tournament: per Sports Illustrated, Mexico ended a 40-year drought without winning a World Cup knockout game this tournament, and they have now won four straight without allowing a single goal. Four wins, four clean sheets, playing largely in front of their own supporters at a stadium they functionally own.

England, by contrast, played all four of its previous games in the United States—Dallas, Foxborough, East Rutherford, and Atlanta—winning in front of crowds that were majority English, according to BBC Sport's Alan Shearer. Against DR Congo in Atlanta, Shearer noted roughly 75 percent of the crowd backed England. Sunday's crowd of more than 80,000 is expected to run around 80 percent Mexican, per BBC Sport.

Shearer's Case for England

Former England striker Alan Shearer, writing for BBC Sport ahead of the match, pushed back on the fear narrative. "All the talk stops when they run out anyway, and if they play the game rather than the occasion then I think they will win," he wrote. He also flagged the kick-off time confusion. A proposal to move the match earlier was floated and then dropped. Shearer called it "a silly idea" that would have disrupted thousands of fans who had already booked travel.

Shearer also made the point that England has played in front of hostile majorities before, and that elite players train their whole careers for exactly this kind of stage.

The Fair Concern from England's Camp

The strongest worry Tuchel's side faces is not psychological but physiological. Altitude acclimatization takes days the team doesn't have. Tuchel was candid: "There will be many obstacles. The altitude will be a major disadvantage because we can't acclimate to it." A squad full of Premier League players who trained in humid American cities does not arrive at 7,200-plus feet ready to press for 90 minutes against a team that has played there repeatedly this tournament. That concern is real and Tuchel hasn't minimized it.

England's Harry Kane has two goals in the tournament, both decisive in the comeback win over DR Congo, the first time England had won a World Cup match after trailing 1-0 since the 1966 final, according to the LA Times. A side with that kind of finishing threat cannot be written off.

The Historical Weight

This is England's first return to the Azteca since the 1986 World Cup quarterfinal, when Argentina's Diego Maradona scored both the infamous "Hand of God" goal and what has been called the tournament's most beautiful goal in a 2-1 elimination win, according to the LA Times. Tuchel said before leaving the United States that the match was a chance for England to "make amends" with the stadium and that "karma will come back for us."

Per Sports Illustrated, this is only the 10th all-time meeting between the two nations. The last came in a 2010 friendly at Wembley, with current Mexico manager Javier Aguirre on the touchline. He was then in his second stint in charge, now in the same role again.

The unresolved question entering Sunday is straightforward. Mexico has not conceded once in four games. Whether England's attack can end that run at altitude, in front of 80,000 hostile fans, is what the match will answer.