Sochi, Russia (Reuters) - Mexico scored twice in the second half to reverse a 2-1 victory and beat New Zealand's hopes of their first win in the Confederations Cup on Wednesday.
New Zealand have never won a match in three previous Confederations Cups dating back to 1999, but they were the best side in the first half and came up with a great goal from Chris Wood.
But Mexico rebounded after the break and Raul Jimenez equalized nine minutes into the second half.
Javier Aquino broke through the left-hand corner and swapped the ball on the edge of the box to give Jimenez a superb shot in the net.
Uribe Peralta took the victory with a narrow-angle shot in the 72nd minute after another neat pass from Aquino.
Both teams had plenty of chances to score again during the exciting second half.
Juergen Dam missed at least two chances for Mexico, while New Zealand's Ryan Thomas was out of luck when his fine shot hit the crossbar.
Two minutes from the end Tommy Smith saved Jimenez from the line.
New Zealand have never won a match in three previous Confederations Cups dating back to 1999, but they were the best side in the first half and came up with a great goal from Chris Wood.
But Mexico rebounded after the break and Raul Jimenez equalized nine minutes into the second half.
Javier Aquino broke through the left-hand corner and swapped the ball on the edge of the box to give Jimenez a superb shot in the net.
Uribe Peralta took the victory with a narrow-angle shot in the 72nd minute after another neat pass from Aquino.
Both teams had plenty of chances to score again during the exciting second half.
Juergen Dam missed at least two chances for Mexico, while New Zealand's Ryan Thomas was out of luck when his fine shot hit the crossbar.
Two minutes from the end Tommy Smith saved Jimenez from the line.
"It was an equal game tonight," said New Zealand coach Anthony Hodson