26 - 2 > 23

Mexico's 26-man squad has been chopped down to 24 with the announcement from the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) that defenders Juan Carlos Valenzuela (America) and Adrian Aldrete (Morelia) won't be travelling with the team for the pre-World Cup European tour.

Bizarrely, one other player will be in Europe but then not make the plane to South Africa as World Cup squads are made up of 23 players.

Chivas' "Bofo" Bautista is the favourite to get cut but he'll be in South Africa anyway after winning a competition with a major Mexican bank for two tickets for the World Cup. The final list will be announced by Javier Aguirre on June 1.

"We appreciate the dedication, discipline, professionalism and commitment of the two gentlmen during the training camp and in the team's friendly matches," reads a statement on the FMF website.

Mexico play their send off game Sunday against Chile in the Azteca stadium in Mexico City.