Univision

Well, at least Sven never kicked anyone.

Sven-Goran Eriksson couldn't raise the game of Mexico and was sent packing after just 10 months on the job. The immense pressure of resurrecting El Tri must be getting to the current Mexican manager, Javier Aguirre. How else do you explain his actions in the 79th minute of a frustrating 1-1 Gold Cup draw with Panama on Thursday?

With Panama's Ricardo Phillips and Mexico's Fausto Pinto sprinting up the line in a battle for possession near the Mexico bench, Aguirre stepped toward the touchline to perfectly time a right-footed volley on Phillips' groin area. Aguirre even acted surprised when an understandably angry Phillips gave him a two-handed shove.

No team has more riding on the Gold Cup than Mexico, which is hoping to use the tournament to turn things around in time for its biggest game of the year – the Aug. 12 World Cup qualifier against the United States at Estadio Azetca. Whether Aguirre is allowed to lead his team into battle against the hated Americans will depend on the severity of the punishment, but his campaign for contrition is already underway after these postgame comments.

"I didn't have good conduct in those two or three minutes, that in my opinion, were brought on by a waste of time by part of the opponent that tried to defend a ball when the referee had called a throw in," an apologetic Aguirre explained. "The Panamanian player (Phillips) kept on playing outside the pitch. I wanted to stop the ball, there is contact with the player, inevitably because of the momentum that the player had. I lifted my foot too much and I regret that."

"The only one who knows the intention of the play is me. The player had a lot of speed," Aguirre continued. "There was actually a Mexican player in the middle and I didn't have time to move my foot. That's how I see it, and there's no one who can say what my intention was."

This picture of a thousand words begs to differ.