With a place in the last eight at stake, this game promises to be a blockbuster. Brazil are clearly the favourites to win this game but it might not be too easy for the Seleção on the field considering how this World Cup has turned out to be unfortunate for the big teams and former champions.
While El Tri have upset the Germans, they were however completely blown away by Sweden. If they want to stop Brazil and secure a place for them in the final eight for the first time in over 32 years, they’ll need to replicate with greater fervour what they did to Germany, holding their ground at the back and counter-attacking with breakneck speed whenever the ball came to them.
The pair have already squared up 40 times and Brazil have the edge historically with 23 wins to Mexico’s 10, plus 7 draws. Their last encounter was a friendly match held three years ago in Sao Paulo, which the hosts won 2-0 with goals from Philippe Coutinho and Diego Tardelli.
This will be the teams’ fifth showdown in the FIFA World Cup, where they first crossed paths in 1950. Brazil have by far the better head-to-head record in this competition with three wins, one draw and 11 goals scored, whereas Mexico have never managed to breach the Brazilian’s defence. The most recent meeting took place in the group phase four years ago and finished 0-0.
Can the likes of Neymar, Philippe Coutinho and Paulinho breach the Mexican defence or will Guillermo Ochoa be the Mexicans’ saviour?
The match will be played at the Cosmos Arena in Samara, Russia. It will begin at 07:30 pm IST and will be telecast live on Sony Ten 2 SD and HD, Sony Ten 3 SD and HD, Sony ESPN SD.
The team line-ups:
The teams are in for #BRAMEX! #WorldCup
👇👇👇 pic.twitter.com/cayJmgV2fJ
— FIFA World Cup 🏆 (@FIFAWorldCup) July 2, 2018
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