At the age of 39, he accepted AVS's challenge to continue his career and stay on the national team's radar ahead of the 2026 World Cup, which will also be played in his country and could be the sixth in which he participates.
In an exclusive interview with Tribalfootball partners Flashscore, the goalkeeper explained the reasons that brought him to Portugal and revealed that he had already received offers from FC Porto, Benfica and SC Braga in the past.
He started as a striker, scored two goals, but did his best to avoid them throughout his career. Ochoa made his football debut at a young age with his hometown club, América, but it was always with the Mexican national team that he made his name, so much so that he is now a household name around the world.
An Olympic medal is the highlight of a resume that he himself knows could have reached another level. Surprisingly, he left Salernitana in Italy for AVS, a team recently promoted to the Portuguese top tier from a small town just 30 minutes from Porto.
In this interview, the Guadalajara-born goalkeeper looked back on his first steps as a footballer, talked about his first months in Portuguese football and outlined his main goal for the rest of his career: to be present at the World Cup in 2026.
Why Portugal at this stage of your career?
“Portugal allows me to continue my career and continue playing, which is what I love most in my life. It is an important competition, one of the most important in Europe, and it allows me to play at an important level to further my career to continue.” and continue to play for Mexico.”
We are going to organize a World Cup that will partly take place in Mexico. Will that be special for you?
“Yes, I have played in five World Cups. It is something very special, a special feeling, something important for a player. Not everyone gets to play in five World Cups, and no one has ever been to six.”
“It would be very special for me to appear at a sixth World Cup in Mexico; for Mexican football it would go down in football history, and now, at this stage, only three players can do that: Ronaldo, Messi and me.
“It's not easy as a goalkeeper. They score a lot of goals. It's easier to score goals than to defend. I want to be in the World Cup. We'll see if I can do that, I know at the end of the competition stand.” My career is not easy, there are more injuries, more pain, it's normal, that's life. Let's see if I can do it.”
It would be the icing on the cake of a brilliant career that started 24 years ago when you made my debut with the Olympic team in 2004.
“I started playing professionally at a young age. It happened very quickly. I made my debut in Mexico with Club América when I was 18. Playing for a club like América at 18 is not easy, it's like Portuguese goalkeeper at the age of 18 for Benfica or Portugal It's not easy, you need a lot of things to play for a big team.
“I was lucky that my coach, Leo Beenhakker, had a lot of confidence in me. I quickly joined the national team (in Athens, 2004) with a coach like Ricardo La Volpe, who knows a lot about football.
“At that time he was also the coach of Mexico, not only of the promises. That was my first experience with the national team, at the Olympic Games. I did not play a match, but I did gain experience.”
The striker who was called into goal
The following year comes the senior national team.
“The senior team, yes. My first match was 19 years ago, a friendly in the United States against Hungary. I played in the second half and managed to leave the second half with a clean sheet. I played that match for six months. Before the World Cup I had a good season with América and Ricardo La Volpe believed in me and I managed to go to the World Cup as the third choice goalkeeper.”
Speaking of the national team, there was a moment that will go down in the history of every athlete's career, when you went to the Olympics and won third place in Tokyo.
“Yes, for me that memory is something that will stay with me forever. As footballers we don't get many opportunities to play in the Olympics. Other athletes, in other sports, can do it many times, but in football that so.” always under 23 and only three can be older.
“The coach, Jaime Lozano, spoke to me and said he really believed in me, in my experience, to be captain and to help the team. I spoke to Tata Martino, he let me go and we got an Olympic medal. We came very well.” close to winning a silver or gold medal, but this bronze medal was important for Mexico. In history we have only won two: one gold and one bronze.
“At the last Olympic Games, Mexico failed to qualify. It is not easy to play in the Olympic Games. This medal will always remain in my heart, in my head, in the history of my family. As a footballer, it is something that you only experience once. I was lucky that I was in two players, I didn't play in one and in the one I played in I ended up winning a medal.”
You mentioned Club América. Is that your favorite club?
“Yes, from the perspective of my career, America is something very big. It was the team that gave me everything to start my career, gave me the opportunity to play football. I arrived as a child, nine or ten years old, and I started playing at a football school at Club América, where I started as a striker.
“There was only one goalkeeper per team, and there was already one. I arrived a little late and could only play as a striker, but I played well. In my first match I scored two goals. Then our goalkeeper got a shoulder injury, the coach asked who wanted to be in goal, I raised my hand, saved a penalty and a month later the other goalkeeper came back and I said: 'Okay, this goalkeeping thing is over and I'm going to play striker again'. No, you do stay in goal and play one game each'.
“There were six games to go until the end of the season and then the under-12 team called and I saw my name on the list. I thought it was for the striker but no, it was the goalkeeper. That's how my career started.” I believed in it. I saw that the coaches also believed in me a lot and I started to believe that I could have an important career.”
Is Memo a nickname or a diminutive for Guillermo?
'Guillermo. In Mexico all Guillermo's are Memo. For Spaniards it is easier to say Guille, but in Mexico it is Memo.'
In a certain part of Spain it was 'El Muro de Andalucía'.
“Yes, I am the first Mexican goalkeeper to play in Europe, who left Mexico on an adventure to learn and get to know something. In Europe they have more confidence in Mexican goalkeepers, that is not easy. Playing in Spain was important for I grew up watching Hugo Sánchez on television, who played for Real Madrid for many years. In Mexico, La Liga is very important.
“If a Spanish team calls you, you have to go. A city like Málaga, which is very beautiful, has a beach, good weather, good food, good people and I stayed there for two years. Then I went to Granada for a year, very close and also a very beautiful city. I was able to play in La Liga without a passport. I played in Europe for a long time without a passport, which didn't happen very often.”
Offers from Benfica, FC Porto and… SC Braga
Continue to AVS. I have seen players here from the Mexican national team who have traveled through Portugal, such as Héctor Herrera. Have you ever talked to anyone who had been here to learn more about the country and the league?
“I didn't have to talk to anyone about the Portuguese league because it had already been discussed before. We talked a lot, I saw Liga Portugal matches with players like Herrera, Corona, Diego Reyes, Layun, Raul Jiménez, Omar Govea. Many of They played for FC Porto and when I was with them in the training center we talked about FC Porto, the quality of life and the game. They said you eat well and play well, the Portuguese always like it the neighborhood to help.
“When AVS called me in the last days of the market, I realized where Vila das Aves was. My family lives in Madrid, they stayed there. Changing everything at this stage was difficult. Even in Italy I was there alone and that's what you don't see in the life of a footballer. There are many things behind it, many difficult responsibilities and decisions that I had to make. What I saw first was the city , a direct flight to Madrid in 50 minutes, five hours by car. I am close to my family, close to Spain, Madrid, because after my career I will live in Spain.
“I can continue to play football at a high level like Liga Portugal, I knew that from my colleagues who played here and I knew that the level was good for me and that would allow me to continue in the national team and see how far as I can go.” can go.”
Throughout your career, was this the first time a Portuguese club contacted you or did you have other contacts?
“I've been contacted before. I got calls after the World Cup in Brazil in 2014, from Benfica. Then, in 2018 or 2019, I can't remember, also from FC Porto, when they signed Marchesín from Mexico. He came to FC Porto and I went to America, but I spoke to FC Porto, they preferred to sign Marchesín, there were four goalkeepers on the Portugal list was always there. I also spoke there a few years ago, but we never reached an agreement.”
Does what you learned during your research and what you actually found match what you imagined?
“It was very similar. Everyone asked me if I knew Portugal. I said, 'No, it's my first time in Portugal'. I haven't played any friendly matches in Portugal, only three times against the Portuguese national team, but not in Portugal.” Portugal We played in the US, the Confederations Cup and the World Cup, but not in Portugal.
“Even as a tourist I didn't know it. When I arrived I really enjoyed it. I live in Porto, near the beach, it takes 30 minutes to get here, everyone here in Portugal says it takes a long time, but for To me, who used to live in Mexico, it's nothing. Thirty minutes on the highway, without traffic, without noise, I miss my family, children are starting to grow up.”
Do you realize that this is an absolutely abnormal reality in a city like Vila das Aves? You are a world-famous figure, everyone sympathizes with you. Do you realize that this is how people see you?
“I try not to think about it. If you think like that, you can't achieve more in your career. My career at the clubs was not easy, it was difficult to write my story. Sometimes people only see the World Cups. I've been there and I'm happy with that, but behind those World Cups there is a story of overcoming, working and growing.
“Life doesn't always go in a straight line. There are difficult times when you have to work to get out of that situation, to grow and feel free. Sometimes you have a lot of people who are bad for football. That's my story. out of the country, so that people get to know me. In Spain, people take a photo and ask for autographs. When I travel to Italy, Arabia, Japan, people want to take a photo and they recognize me, they also recognize my work.
“That's the most important thing. When I arrived in Portugal, people had a lot of respect for my work, and people in my country sometimes forget that.”
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