The most important game of group D is, without a doubt, Mexico against Portugal. Bolton’s striker, Jared Borgetti, will miss this match, though, because of injury. Still, the team hopes he will be back for the knckout stages, if Mexico qualifies, of course.

Borgetti missed El Tri’s scoreless draw with Angola on Friday, and trainer Milton Graniolatti was the first to confirm that the forward’s injury would keep him out of the last group game.

“He cannot play for this game against Portugal,” Graniolatti said after the team’s midday training session on Monday. “But there’s hope he will play in the next game.”

Borgetti, who underwent a second MRI examination on Monday, did not attend the practice session. He did some light jogging in Sunday’s training but did not take part in scrimmages or drills.

The forward spent Monday doing rehab, including riding a stationary bicycle and swimming, Serrano said. Borgetti’s progress will be evaluated each day.

“The ideal thing, for me, is another five days,” Serrano said. “We would be able to say that with those five days more, we would consider him 100 percent recuperated.”

The 33-year-old Bolton striker, whose 38 career international goals lead El Tri, was hurt while chasing down a loose ball early in the second half of Mexico’s 3-1 win over Iran on June 11.

Source: WCoffsite