On the morning after a historic loss to the United States, the birds did not stop chirping enthusiastically, the sun still rose, and Mexico, without controversy, continued to have Jose Manuel de la Torre as its manager. There's a certain evolution that must happen with a country which has aspirations of being a great football nation. Once panicked at the mere thought of a loss to a rival, at some point a country must gain the value of perspective when it does suffer defeat.

Certainly, El Tri's 1-0 loss to the U.S. on Wednesday night was humbling for a football program that had appeared unbeatable recently, but the defeat hardly portends any long-term disaster. In fact, the match gives De la Torre an opportunity to reset his roster for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers.

Players who had previously been automatics for El Tri must soon face the reality that they will now have to compete for jobs with some of the talented players from the youth ranks. That De la Torre will be the one to make these decisions, in spite of the loss and without much of a call for his head, signals that perhaps Mexico has finally grown up as a soccer nation. Not only did Mexico, and its players, have to learn how to win big tournaments, they also had to learn how to lose without believing the sky was falling. For now, it appears they have done so.