COLUMBUS - Mexico's next 2010 World Cup qualifying match will be at home against Costa Rica on March 28.

COLUMBUS - Mexico's next 2010 World Cup qualifying match will be at home against Costa Rica on March 28.

The question on the minds of many supporters of El Tri is: will that team still be led by coach Sven-Goran Eriksson?

Already under fire after leading Mexico to just one win in its previous six matches, the pressure on the 61-year-old Swede could hardly have been greater than in the 65th minute of Mexico's 2-0 loss to the US on Wednesday.

That's when captain Rafael Marquez was shown a red card for his midair collision with US goalkeeper Tim Howard.

"It's my winning mentality that got a hold of me," said Marquez, who plays for Barcelona. "When you know you can't win, my temperament comes out. I need to learn to control my temperament and help my team more."

Eriksson accepted the apology and defended Marquez.

"You heard him: he's saying he's proud to be Mexican, and he's [saying he's] very sorry to the fans," Eriksson told a skeptical group of Mexican journalists outside Columbus Crew Stadium.

But it is unclear whether the Mexican Football Federation will be as patient with Eriksson.

"Football is a big sport and, face it, sometimes it's not a friend of [patience]," Eriksson said. - Sapa-AP