Before the final of the Confederations Cup on Sunday there will be a third placed play-off which is a match nobody really wants to be a part of. The unfortunate pair to be in this staging are the European champions Portugal and the best of Central and Northern America in Mexico.
This will be the second time that these two have met out in Russia. They opened their tournaments against each other in a Group A match which ended 2-2. We should get another entertaining match here.
Portugal
It all looked to be going nicely for Portugal in this tournament but then they ran into a Chile side that they surprisingly failed to break down and in the end their campaign came to an end from a competitive point of view when they went down to the South Americans in a penalty shootout which the Euro 2016 winners were pathetic in.
This is a nothing match in the long term for Portugal but they could still do with winning it to get a winning mentality going in their squad ahead of what they hope will be a return to Russia in 12 months time for the big one. A win here would be a good way to end their season and set them up for next year.
Mexico
While Portugal end their season in this match Mexico go on to the Gold Cup from here so they will be eager to win this match and build something going forward. They have struggled throughout this tournament with an inability to score the first goal costing them dear and in the end they were found out against Germany in the semi-final.
Defensively throughout this tournament Mexico have been a bit of a shambles and that is something they will need to work on both at the Gold Cup and going forward if they are to be successful when they return to Russia next year. At the other end of the pitch they look good with skill, trickery and plenty of dynamism.
Team News
Portugal will be without Cristiano Ronaldo for this tournament as he has left early due to becoming a father. Pepe was suspended for the semi-final but he is available for this match.
Mexico will be able to welcome Andres Guardado back for this game but Osorio is expected to rotate his side to ensure everyone is up and at it ahead of their campaign in the Gold Cup next week.
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Betting
You always have to go searching for who will be the most motivated in these matches whenever you bet on them. I suspect it will be Mexico as they go on from this to the Gold Cup next week although the squad competing in that is much different to this one.
I don’t see either of these teams having anything to lose here so we should get a decent, open and attacking game, much like their group stage battle, and I’m expecting to see goals. Mexico are not hard to break down but they have plenty of attacking instinct. With the quality on show here over 3 goals looks a solid punt even without Ronaldo.
Tips
Back Over 3 goals for a 4/10 stake at 2.00 with BetVictor
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