El Tri were mightily impressive against Germany and will be looking to do more of the same versus South Korea on Saturday in Rostov. Meanwhile, the Koreans, who were undone by a Granqvist penalty, will try to bounce back and stay in contention. The kickoff is at 17:00 GMT(+2).
Head-to-head
Mexico have not had much success against Saturday’s Group F opponent in the past. In five meetings between 1998 and 2006 (friendlies, Confederations Cup, Gold Cup), El Tri won once, drew twice and lost two times. However, the win did come in a group stage match during the 1998 World Cup (3-1) and Mexico has also celebrated victory in the only other contest since 2006. It was a friendly in 2014 that finished 4-0.
Starting lineups and Prediction
Considering how organized and well-prepared Mexico looked against Germany, I wouldn’t expect Juan Carlos Osorio to make more than one change in the starting lineup. The only way I could see that happening is if he decides to tweak the tactical formation on order to match and exploit the opponent’s strengths and weaknesses.
Mexico projected starting lineup
Guillermo Ochoa, Jesus Gallardo, Hector Moreno, Hugo Ayala, Carlos Salcedo, Andres Guardado (captain), Hector Herrera, Miguel Layun, Carlos Vela, Hirving Lozano, Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez.
Sweden was a favorite to beat South Korea, but the Koreans were even worse than anticipated. Shin Tae-Yong’s team was too one-dimensional. It mostly relied on defense and lacked ideas when time came to attack. It was a concerning performance and the complete opposite of Mexico’s display against Germany. Experienced defender Park Joo-Ho suffered a muscle injury in the first half of the Sweden match and will most likely miss this fixture.
South Korea projected starting lineup
Cho Hyun-Woo, Lee Yong, Jang Hyun-Soo, Kim Young-Gwon, Kim Min-Woo, Koo Ja-Cheol, Ki Sung-Yueng (captain), Lee Jae-Sung, Son Heung-Min, Kim Shin-Wook, Hwang Hee-Chan.
Prediction
There are two ways we can look at this.
- We can take these teams’ first round games out of the equation and compare them with no prejudice. In that case, Mexico’s international experience, quantity of quality footballers, aggression, passion, energy, speed and quickness gives them the edge.
- We can include these teams’ first round games and add them to the equation. In that case, Mexico’s international experience, quantity of quality footballers, aggression, passion, energy, speed, quickness and impressive victory over Germany gives them an even bigger edge.
Betting odds
South Korea 6
Draw 3.80
Mexico 1.66