Mexico’s Keeper Pulled Off a Save That Shouldn’t Have Been Possible. Now They’re Through.

Raúl Rangel threw himself sideways, the ball already past him, and somehow kept it out. Then he did it again two seconds later. That’s the kind of night it was for Mexico.

The co-hosts punched their ticket to the knockout rounds with a 1-0 win over South Korea on Thursday, but it wasn’t comfortable. Not even close. Mexico controlled long stretches of the game, but South Korea pushed hard late and nearly stole a point.

How Mexico broke through

The whole game turned on a moment South Korea’s goalkeeper would rather forget. He tried to collect a loose ball in the box, but it squirted free. Luis Romo was right there. He didn’t hesitate, just smashed it into the net. That was the only goal of the game, and it came in the second half.

Mexico came into this match with momentum. They beat South Africa 2-0 in their opener and looked sharp doing it. But South Korea was no pushover. They stunned Czechia 2-1 in Matchday 1, so both teams knew this one could decide the group.

The save that sealed it

Late in the game, South Korea threw everything forward. They got a decent look, and it looked like the ball was headed for the far corner. Rangel dove, got a hand to it, and deflected it onto the post. The rebound fell to another Korean player, and Rangel was still on the ground. He kicked out a leg and blocked that one too. It was the kind of sequence that gets replayed for years.

Fans online were losing it. One clip posted by Fox Sports had people calling it the save of the tournament so far. Hard to argue with that.

What’s next for Mexico

With four points in Group A, Mexico is guaranteed a top-two finish and a spot in the Round of 32. They’re essentially in the driver’s seat to win the group too, unless South Korea blows out South Africa in the final matchday and Mexico loses to Czechia. That’s unlikely but possible.

Mexico’s last group stage game is against Czechia on June 23 at 9 p.m. ET. After that, the knockout round bracket gets real. For a host nation, every game at home feels bigger. They’ve handled the pressure so far.