Three easy suggestions for Mexico

Javier Aguirre (left) could call in Cuauhtémoc Blanco, a star upon whom he relied heavily during his first coaching stint with Mexico. AP Luis Bueno's Mailbag Submit a comment or question for Luis. Name: Email: Hometown: Question: SEND

Javier Aguirre was officially welcomed to his new job Thursday as he began his second stint with the Mexican national team. And while the hope -- perhaps expectation is a more adequate word -- is that Aguirre not only will turn around a struggling Tricolor side, but will have the team firing on all cylinders. Still, he started his era off trying to stress he's no Superman.

"I'm not going to emerge from a phone booth," Aguirre said during his introductory press conference. "I'm here to add something to the team, recover the team's identity and convince people that we can do things together."

In 2001, Aguirre took over during Mexico's sinking World Cup qualifying campaign. Now, he takes over again during a poor qualifying campaign. This time, though, he will have some time to prepare for what he called Mexico's D-Day, a June 6 encounter at El Salvador.

How can Aguirre begin his second go-round successfully? Some suggestions:

• Strip Rafael Márquez of the captaincy and hand the armband to Pável Pardo. Aguirre made it clear that only players who are honored and respectful of the jersey will be allowed to defend it. Márquez's karate-style defending leaves room for doubt about the player's ability with El Tri. Pardo, meanwhile, is the most respected player in Mexico, and his successful stint with Stuttgart proved his worth as a player. Aguirre dropped Pardo when he took over in '01 but should embrace the player this time around.

• Bring back Cuauhtémoc Blanco. And Braulio Luna. Aguirre welcomed back a respected veteran to the squad in '01 when he brought back aging but useful Alberto García Aspe. Blanco is in the same role now, clearly past his prime and in the twilight of his career, but he still can offer something to the squad and, if nothing else, offers a glimpse back to a time when Mexico didn't struggle in World Cup qualifying. Luna is a hard-nosed World Cup veteran, someone young players can learn quite a lot from.

• Lay low until June. There are quite a lot of issues with the Mexican national team now, from players' indiscipline to the foreigner debate to Nery Castillo's blow-up and players' ongoing quarrel with the Mexican media. If Aguirre doesn't put himself in the public light, he will allow things to play out quietly until June. The focus then will be on El Salvador and it will be easier to deflect such issues then.

Chivas in shambles, too

In Mexican soccer, Chivas de Guadalajara represents many things. The club's red-and-white stripes are synonymous with success (a record 11 league championships), popularity (only Club América rivals it) and the republic of Mexico (only a smattering of foreign-born players have ever suited up for Guadalajara).

But continuity isn't one of the the club's redeeming qualities. Neither is stability. And respect? Toluca and Pachuca are often lauded as the best franchises in Mexican soccer today.

Chivas' situation went from troubled to ridiculous, difficult to absurd, challenging to preposterous. Club owner Jorge Vergara continued his meddling ways by removing yet another manager from yet another perceived difficult situation Wednesday when he sacked Omar Arellano and replaced him with Francisco "Paco" Ramírez. Earlier this year, Ramírez gained notoriety in the States for slapping U.S. national-team defender Frankie Hejduk following Mexico's 2-0 loss to the Americans in February.

In case you lost count, that's 11 managers now that have come and gone since Vergara took over in '02. A rundown: Daniel Guzmán was in charge when Vergara took over but was let go after the Apertura '02 season. Eduardo de la Torre followed and lasted barely more than one season. Hans Westerhof replaced de la Torre midway through the Apertura '03 season. After Westerhof took Chivas to the Clausura '04 final, Benjamín Galindo came in the following season. He lasted two full seasons, and was sacked three games into the Apertura '05. Juan Carlos Ortega briefly replaced him before Xabier Azkargorta finished the season as manager.

Westerhof returned to start the Clausura '06 but was replaced midway by Jose Manuel "Chepo" de la Torre, who finally led Chivas to a title. But even the Apertura '06 championship didn't secure his job as Vergara chased him midway through the Apertura '07 season, when Efraín Flores took over.

Interestingly, Guzmán and Chepo de la Torre each went on to win league titles after leaving Chivas, while Galindo also led another club to consecutive finals appearances.

Now, Vergara turns to Ramírez, who has never managed in the Mexican First Division before. His first task? Defeat Chivas' bitter rival, América, in the Mexican superclásico on Sunday. If Ramírez can't defeat Vergara's hated rivals, the latest Chivas era may not last much longer either.