The sorting of the groups of the 2016 Copa America tournament took place this past Sunday and left a very positive note for the Mexican side.

Despite the tournament being held in the United States, past games have proven that much of the fan base in the US roots for Mexico, raising the expectations for El Tri to a higher level.

The toughest opponents for Mexico will clearly be Uruguay and Jamaica. Uruguay will come into the tournament with great players such as Luis Suarez (who is currently dominating La Liga at Barcelona with 25 goals) on its roster. Uruguay reached the quarterfinals in the Copa America last year and is the team with the most Copa America championship wins under its belt. The last big tournament for these two to face each other was back in 2010, when Luis Suarez gave the Uruguayans the 1-0 victory. Mexico will have to bring its powerhouse European players with great confidence into this match particularly. They will have to be quick on their feet to any sudden style changes or playing tactics Uruguay will have under their sleeve. It is the only way they will win on June 5th.

Jamaica has also proven to be a worthy adversary since their amazing performance in the Gold Cup this past summer. The team dominated the Gold Cup, with only one loss the whole tournament and eight goals in favor. Their strength against the US in that 2-1 victory proved they should be considered as one of the powerhouses in CONCACAF. But despite the impressive playing, Mexico still overcame that and ended up beating them in a surprise upset at the Gold Cup final 3-1. Mexico will need to find that strength to prove skeptics wrong again during their match against Jamaica on June 9th and show it wasn’t a fluke.

In terms of Venezuela, the only real challenge Mexico faces when it comes to matches like this is their own sense of confidence and style of playing. Mexico has always had a problem with playing at the level of their opponent; when it comes to weaker teams, the weaker, clumsier side of El Tri comes out. Mexico must find that balance of strength and dominance against Venezuela and the two matches before facing them will surely determine that.

All in all, the sorting came out in Mexico’s favor. With a home field advantage and all eyes on them, Mexico should more likely than not advance out of their group.

The game last Wednesday resulted in a 2-0 victory for El Tri that did not come easily. Mexico proved itself the victor at Marlins Park in Miami but not without a few bumps in the road.

The game itself was predicted to be clumsy from the get-go. With a not-so-well-known squad announced to play the game, the first couple minutes saw a very unfamiliar team attempt to take on the fast opponent that was Senegal. A majority of the first half was spent with Senegal trying to finish both breakaways inside the box and corners given to their side.

There were a few opportunities for Mexico in the first half. The unfamiliar players on the Mexican squad at times started a few plays, with forward Eduardo “Lalo” Herrera seeing some great through balls and chip passes being given to him by Zavala. However, Mexico also gave up too many balls on their side, including a mistake from Yasser Corona in the 17th minute of play that was ultimately saved by an impressive Jesus Corona in the goal.

Youngsters Jurgen Damm and Hirving Lozano showed incredible potential during the game. Damm proved to be a worth attacker early into the game, challenging the Senegal defense with strong runs towards the goal. Lozano also showed strong attacking capabilities by giving impressive passes (one that would later lead to a goal) and even taking some strikes at the goal himself.

Mexico played sloppy and did not even find the net until the latter part of the second half with a header from Duenas in the 72nd minute and another from Pachuca’s Rodolfo Pizzaro in the 86th minute.

The game proved to be one of finding rhythm and for Osorio, it was a chance for him to see the mistakes made from a majority of players would will not be making appearances this summer. There was hesitation but also confidence that he knew what he was doing and how to fix the problems of the second half. His subs proved to be effective both at the half as well as the later parts of the game.

As he took notes from the sidelines throughout the game, the likely result will be a coach who is more aware of what is to come. We still have yet to see the likes of the European power stars of Chicharito (though injured), Layun, Hector Herrera, Hector Moreno, Guardado and Tecatito be led by Osorio. A clumsy victory against Senegal showed that there is a winning Mexico for Osorio, even with the most unlikely of players.

El Tri’s first match of the year kicks off on Wednesday against Senegal. The match is not an international-FIFA-regulated friendly so there was no surprise that the roster for the upcoming match had no Europeans listed. What was surprising though was the long list of call-ups that are either not-so-well-known players or players that have played before such but will most likely not make it onto the team for Copa America this summer.

This is Osorio’s first match of the year but his third match as coach. He has not lost or drawn a match so far. His two World Cup Qualifiers against El Salvador and Honduras showed potential. But this friendly seems to take away from the progress that he had begun at the end of 2015.

The squad itself will not be judged or determined. There is no need to analyze leadership because Guardado will not be on the field. None of the attacking players playing Wednesday are Chicharito or Vela or Peralta. The debate about keepers is at most a minor discussion.

This game is not about the players at all. In retrospect, the score itself will not even matter. But the game is just another chance to judge and determine just what kind of coach Osorio wants to be.

He has already made bold statements by declaring that Gio or Ochoa are not at the level he wishes his players to be at and has been very open to welcoming all players, even naturalized ones, as eligible candidates for El Tri.

Osorio has only been with the team since October. He is not coming into the team with as impressive as a resume as some former coaches have. This year means big things for him as the manager.

On Wednesday, all eyes will really be on him.