Raúl Jiménez scored his first-ever World Cup goal for Mexico against South Africa, and the 35-year-old broke down in tears at Estadio Azteca. The moment arrives nearly six years after a life-threatening head injury in November 2020 left him unconscious with a
Raúl Jiménez didn’t have much left to hold back once the ball dropped and the moment finally came. Inside Estadio Azteca, the Mexico striker ran off in the second half with tears in his eyes after heading Mexico into a 2-0 lead against South Africa.
The goal carried a weight that didn’t need explaining. Jiménez. 35. was playing on the biggest stage of all and he was doing it almost six years after a collision that left him fighting to survive. During Mexico’s World Cup opening match against South Africa. he wore a special protective headband. a visible reminder of the trauma he had once been told could end everything.
His time back on the field had never been guaranteed. In November 2020, Jiménez clashed heads during a match against Arsenal, was knocked unconscious, and suffered a fractured skull. It took eight months for him to recover. The memories of that night have stayed close, and his celebration on Thursday night made it clear.
Jiménez pointed to the sky as he ran to celebrate. and it brought back the kind of images he could not forget from the early days after the injury. Speaking in 2021. his partner Daniela Basso said she was “just praying he would ‘wake up’” after seeing him lifeless in the aftermath. Basso recalled in a film about Jiménez that she “remember[s] I closed my eyes” and “I just said ‘please wake up. just move a little bit. just to know you’re alive’.”.
On Thursday, the silence that followed his breakthrough felt different. It wasn’t just a World Cup milestone—it was proof. in motion. of the career he rebuilt step by step. Jiménez was unsure whether he would ever play again after the injury. but he has returned to become Mexico’s talismanic striker at a home World Cup. adding his first ever World Cup goal to a story that has carried pain. patience. and a long road back.
Raul Jimenez Mexico South Africa World Cup Estadio Azteca head injury fractured skull protective headband Arsenal Daniela Basso World Cup debut goal