Mexico defeated New Zealand 4-2 in the second leg of their intercontinental playoff on Wednesday to earn a place at the 2014 World Cup finals in Brazil.

Oribe Peralta's first half hat-trick was enough to seal qualification for Mexico.

The CONCACAF heavyweights, who were fortunate to sneak into the playoff, won the two-legged tie 9-3 on aggregate after they had all but sealed qualification with a 5-1 victory over the Oceania champions at the Azteca Stadium last week.

"I'm very happy …(though) we have a lot of work to do," Mexico coach Miguel Herrera told reporters through an interpreter. "Going to the World Cup is totally different than playing a game and we have a lot of work to do before that.

"It was very tough for us to make it.

"We have a lot of work to do on and off the field but we will mix both together and I think Mexico will do well in the World Cup."