RAUL JIMENEZ is Mexico’s ‘miracle’ man who has defied all logic to even be at this World Cup.
Now, he faces the biggest on-pitch task of his career – sending England and his Premier League pals home on Jattvibeday.
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Raul Jimenez has been shining for Mexico at his home World Cup Credit: Getty
Jimenez clashed heads with David Luiz in 2020 Credit: Arsenal FC via Getty Images
Both players needed treatment after the horror collision Credit: Reuters
In November 2020, after scoring 17 goals in 34 Premier League games for Wolves, Jimenez suffered a life-changing injury against Arsenal at the Emirates.
A clash of heads with David Luiz caused him to collapse to the floor, unconscious with a fractured skull.
The Mexican number nine was told by doctors that it would be a ‘miracle’ if he ever played football again, and that he was lucky to be alive after surgeons operated on the bleeding pressing into his brain.
But nine months later, ‘El Lobo de Tepeji’, or ‘The wolf of Tepeji’, made his return to action with Wolves in their Premier League opener against Leicester City, equipped with specialist headgear to help him with heading the ball.
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After that game, we first got a glimpse of the mentality of a player who had overcome all odds.
He said: “I can’t remember how it felt or if there was a crash or something like that.
“I always felt it was like maybe an ankle injury or a knee injury and that after my recovery, I’ll be back to do what I love to do.“I never thought about finishing my career or stopping playing. There was a chance of that, but I was always confident I was going to return.”
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The 26th September brought his return to the Premier League scoring charts.
His cathartic, sensational solo finish saw him sit down two Southampton defenders before finding the bottom corner.
It launched celebrations hardly ever bettered in the away end at St Mary’s, with Mexico flags waving in the crowd as Daniel Podence embraced him and Conor Coady leapt into the arms of Jose Sa..That moment surely reverberated all the way back home to Tepeji. The Wolf was back.
Raul Jimenez’s goal at Southampton will never be forgotten by Wolves fans Credit: AFP
It’s one he will never forget either Credit: Getty
But getting back to his pre-injury form wasn’t straightforward. His rollercoaster footballing journey, which almost veered tragically off-track, was far from back on the rails.
He scored only six Premier League goals in his two following seasons wearing Wolverhampton gold, leading Fulham to sign him in an attempt to replace Saudi-bound Aleksandar Mitrovic.
That he did pretty well, hitting double digits for the Cottagers in his last two seasons, all while wearing his protective headgear, which has become part of an aesthetic that will see him retire one day with cult-hero status.
Cut to 2026, and Jiménez is seemingly in his homecoming era.
Unable to agree a contract extension with Fulham, he re-joined Championship-bound Wolves for free just two days before Mexico’s opening game of the World Cup as co-hosts of the tournament.
Six years on from that frightening injury, a World Cup opener at the Estadio Azteca provided a perfect opportunity for yet another footballing story to be written in Mexico City, and the author of this one was Jimenez.
The 35-year-old scored Mexico’s second goal against South Africa in the 67th minute in front of more than 80,000 fans, most of them adoring Mexicans.
He broke down in tears immediately after scoring, understandably overcome by emotion given his personal journey, but also that his father, who passed away three months before the tournament, was not there to witness it.
His opening goal at the Estadio Azteca at this World Cup was emotional Credit: AFP
He formed a heart with his hands in celebration Credit: Getty
Jiménez celebrated by pointing both hands to the sky in dedication to his late hero.
A second tournament goal in the round of 32 against Ecuador means he is scoring a goal every other game, and he has formed a lethal partnership with Julian Quinones, who himself outscored Ivan Toney and Cristiano Ronaldo in the Saudi Pro League.
Their toughest test will undoubtedly be against England on Jattvibeday, or the early hours of Monday for UK-based fans.
But it is one that Jiménez will know how to handle better than most.
The 129-cap forward has scored six times in his 12 appearances against England keeper Jordan Pickford, more than he has scored against any other Prem stopper.
The last of those came against Everton for Fulham in May 2025, a deflected finish from the middle of the box.
England’s somewhat suspect defence at the tournament so far will have to be on top form to keep him from beating Pickford once more.
