Giovani dos Santos and Mexico are out for glory when they head to the 2017 Confederations Cup in Russia this week.
Immediately following their World Cup qualifying draw with the United States, dos Santos and El Tri boarded a flight for Europe to begin preparations for the tournament. Mexico opens the competition on Sunday against European champion Portugal at Kazan Arena.
Success in big time international competitions is nothing new for dos Santos who owns a U-17 World Championship as well as an Olympic Gold Medal in his trophy case. As El Tri gets their sights on winning their first Confederations Cup since 1999, dos Santos says that he and the rest of the squad are motivated for the task at hand.
"It will be exciting to play in a huge tournament like the Confederations Cup," dos Santos told LA Galaxy Insider. "We’ll get to test ourselves against some of the best national teams in the world...I will try to enjoy the experience."
Following Mexico's opener against Portugal on Sunday, El Tri will then face off against New Zealand on June 21 before ending the group stage against the hosts Russia three days later. The two highest seeded teams will advance to the Knockout Round with the champion being crowned July 2 at Krestovsky Stadium in Saint Petersburg.
