Russia 2018: The best player on every team at the World Cup

Mexico: Javier Hernandez

Mexico have consistently reached the World Cup in recent decades, qualifying for the last six tournaments. They’ve made a habit of getting out of the group stage, but have failed to pass the first knockout round in their last six campaigns.

However, heading to Russia, Javier Hernandez has set some lofty ambitions for the national team in Russia. “We want to be world champions, of course, and that’s why we’re going [to Russia],” he said. “We don’t want to put limits in any way. A lot of people complain that it’s not realistic and we’re not realists, but the reality is that people who don’t dream and aspire to more and more are maybe the ones that are confused.”

Chicharito’s career has been a bit of an underdog’s story. He hasn’t been fully trusted by some of the top clubs in Europe, such as Real Madrid and Manchester United, despite impressive goalscoring records for both teams. The same has proved true at West Ham, who are far from a top European side. Hernandez has been once again starved of minutes, despite racking up an impressive eight goals in 16 starts.

This lack of trust from numerous clubs throughout his career hasn’t stopped the Mexican from achieving some impressive feats when given the chance. He was extremely impressive with Bayer Leverkusen, where he scored 17 goals in his first season in the Bundesliga.

He has always been Mexico’s star man, with 49 goals making him their all-time leading scorer. With much of the current generation beginning to peak, El Tri will be out to break that run of consecutive round of 16 exits.