With so much at stake, the Czech Republic began with urgency and came desperately close to securing the lead after just eight minutes, as Denis Višinský missed the target from inside the box, instantly slumping to his knees in disbelief that he had squandered such a golden opportunity.
Meanwhile, the co-hosts started the match in a very disjointed manner, and posed very little attacking threat in the opening stages.
Ultimately, this was a first half which severely lacked in quality from both teams, and was best summed up by Roberto Alvarado’s shot for Mexico, which he ballooned over the bar from a promising position.
With top spot in the group already assured for El Tri before the start of this contest, Javier Aguirre’s side played with little spark in front of a huge home crowd, and could only muster one shot on target before the interval.
The second half desperately needed someone to take the game by the scruff of the neck, and it was Mateo Chávez who stepped up to take on that responsibility.
With 10 minutes played after the restart, the full-back received a pass from Luis Romo and proceeded to skip past an opponent before calmly slotting the ball past Matěj Kovář to break the deadlock and send the crowd wild.
The situation quickly became very dire indeed for the Czech Republic, as poor defending allowed Julián Quiñones to poke the ball home and notch his second goal of the tournament just after the hour mark.
There was a far happier story at the other end, though, as popular 40 year-old El Tri goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa came on to rapturous applause in the latter stages, replacing Raúl Rangel after 78 minutes to add another chapter to his WC legacy.
The result was never in doubt after Mexico claimed their second goal of the game, and El Tri sealed the three points in style when substitute Álvaro Fidalgo scored deep into stoppage time. With this comfortable win, which marked their biggest at the WC since 1970,
El Tri are now unbeaten in their last 11 games. Meanwhile, Miroslav Koubek and his squad will have to reflect on a disappointing WC campaign, after failing to make the most of a return after 20 years’ absence from the biggest stage of all.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Roberto Alvarado (Mexico)