The 2014 World Cup has reached the stage where teams will play their second games. Today the hosts Brazil will take on Mexico in the second match for both teams. The game is scheduled for a 3:00 p.m. (EST) start time and it will be televised nationally on ESPN. Currently the odds for the match have Brazil as the favorite in this matchup.
Brazil didn't play the best in their opening matchup against Croatia. But Brazil survived an own goal early in the match by Marcelo to find a way to win. Having a supreme talent on the pitch like Neymar certainly helps as the Brazilian striker found the back of the net twice in the game as Brazil found a way to win 3-1.
Mexico looked very solid in their opening game of the World Cup, beating Cameroon 1-0. The Mexicans had a pair of goals waived off in the opening half because of offsides calls, whether they were good calls or not. Giovani dos Santos was the source for both disallowed goals. Mexico got their lone tally from Oribe Peralta in the game, off a deflection from a dos Santos shot.
This game is very important to both teams. Brazil has been made the massive favorites by the oddsmakers. Mexico will surely like to get at least one point out of this matchup, but being big underdogs it's hard to determine if they will be able to hang around with the home country team. But if Mexico is able to play well and salvage a draw or even win, they'll certainly place themselves in a good position to make the knockout round.
The strikers for both clubs could be the biggest importance of this game. Both dos Santos and Neymar will be battling in the scoring column, we believe. Neymar has scored 33 times in 50 career games for Brazil. If he continues to roam the front of the pitch for the Brazilians and scores in this matchup, Mexico could be in a bad position. Mexico will certainly be looking to find a way to stop him from putting pressure on their defense.
We expect Brazil to pick up their second win here today, but it doesn't appear to be an easy one, at least on paper. This has the makings of the best matchup and game in Group A and we expect both teams to play well. We would not be surprised with a draw here, but we'll take Brazil to get it done.
Free Pick: Brazil 3, Mexico 2
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