World Cup hosts South Africa come into their own tournament in good form, having beaten Denmark, Colombia and Guatemala, and drawn with Bulgaria in their last 4 games – extremely good results. They will come up against a very strong in Mexico, who performed well in losses to England and Holland before convincingly beating Gambia and World Cup holders Italy.
While Mexico do have a stronger team, including household names such as Carlos Vela, Barcelona’s Rafael Marquez, Carlos Salcido and Guillermo Franco, South Africa are hardly pushovers, able to call on one of Europe’s most wanted midfielders Everton’s Steven Pienaar, Portsmouth’s highly experienced Aaron Mokoena and Fulham’s Kagisho Dikgacoi, one of their Confederations Cup top performers.
What makes Mexico mild favourites on paper is their experience and ability to score more goals than South Africa, who may come to rue leaving all-time top scorer Benni McCarthy back in London.
Don’t expect the game to be a high-scoring affair, with both teams likely to reserve their best form for games against France and Uruguay. If there is a more likely winner, it would have to be Mexico, who regularly compete at these tournaments and have qualified for the knockout round in each of their last four World Cups, whereas South Africa have never made it past Round 1.
South Africa v Mexico Odds / South Africa v Mexico Match Betting / Bet on South Africa to Win
