South Korea vs Mexico match preview
The main story going into this game is that Mexico have the chance to solidify their standing in Group F.
After their shock win over Germany, they are favourites to qualify out of their group, possibly with the world champions.
They do have one contender for that spot, however, and it is Sweden who defeated South Korea in their first 2018 World Cup game.
That means that both sides are tied in first, but with the Swedes facing off against Germany, Juan Carlos Osorio’s side have a big opportunity to get themselves ahead.
Then, all they would need is to draw with Sweden in their final game to secure qualification and should they win, qualify top of their group!
That is no easy task but going into the game against South Korea, there are lots of reasons to be optimistic.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Mexico - Hirving Lozano
The scorer of the only goal in the surprise 1-0 victory over Germany, PSV star Lozano was already being tipped for a move to one of Europe's heavyweight clubs, and the attacker's decisive strike in Moscow will invite yet more interest in his qualities.
South Korea - Ki Sung-yueng
Osorio identified outgoing Swansea City midfielder Ki as an important figure for South Korea, and urged his players to bypass the center of the pitch in a bid to nullify the 29-year-old's influence.
KEY OPTA STATS
- Mexico has not won back to back matches at the World Cup since 2002, when it beat Croatia and Ecuador in the first two group matches that year.
- South Korea has failed to keep a clean sheet in 12 of its last 13 World Cup matches, conceding in each of the last seven games in a row.
- Rafael Marquez appeared in the opening match for Mexico, making him the third player to play in five separate World Cup tournaments (2002, 2006, 2010, 2014 and 2018) after fellow Mexican Antonio Carbajal and Germany's Lothar Matthaus.
- Marquez was 39 years and 124 days old in his substitute appearance against Germany, making him the oldest outfield player to appear in a World Cup match since Roger Milla (42 years, 38 days) played for Cameroon against Russia in 1994.
South Korea vs Mexico Head-to-head
The teams share 2 wins and 1 draw from their 5 overall meetings spread across various tournaments.
Their lone meeting in a World Cup came back in the 1986 edition hosted at Mexico. The El Tri run rout with a 3-1 win on that occasion.
Their most recent meeting was in a friendly in 2014 and Mexico bagged a comfortable 4-0 win.
South Korea vs Mexico Prediction
It was brilliant all-round performance that helped Mexico trump Germany to three points in their opening group game. While, the number of scoring chances created was impressive, the finishing must improve and I expect to see this on Friday.
Meantime, Korea are too defensive and one-dimensional in their approach to attack. They saw plenty of ball in the closing stages of the match against Sweden, but hardly put one inside the penalty box.
It is clear that Mexico are a bigger attacking threat than Sweden and they will score at some point. Korea are too numb going forward, nor do they have the security of a secure defense.
Therefore, I can see the Mexicans grab another win and put pressure on Germany and Sweden who will go head-to-head later that day.
South Korea vs Mexico Betting Tips
Mexico to win is a juicy banker @ 1.65 odd
Over 1.5 team goals for Mexico @ 1.72 is a banker.
Javier Hernández (Chicharito) to score anytime @ 2.50 odd.
Tag :
South Korea vs Mexico,
World Cup
