Mexico v South Korea Betting Markets
Mexico are hovering around the even money mark to win this Group A clash in Guadalajara. El Tri were always the likely winners against South Africa and so it proved, although the co-hosts weren't particularly impressive when landing a 2-0 success. Raul Jimenez was able to double his team's lead although they took advantage of Bafana Bafana's poor defensive capabilities.
Javier Aguirre takes charge of the team and he's done well with the international team in the past. It's now been four successive wins for the Mexicans who will have home advantage and they did warm up for the tournament with a 5-1 success against Serbia. The manager will hope that his team can actually produce a better attacking performance against opponents who aren't without a chance.
South Korea have the confidence of that 2-1 win over Czech Republic which basically means that only a point is needed to go through. However, the higher up the standings means a potentially easier clash and the Asian side certainly have the potential to win. It's been three straight wins for the Taegeuk Warriors although that was preceded by a 1-0 defeat against Austria and a 4-0 hammering at the hands of Ivory Coast.
The two teams did meet back in September in a friendly that took place in Nashville where a 2-2 draw was played out. However, there is South Korean frailty in defence and that was shown by a 5-0 defeat at the hands of Brazil in the following game. We're leaning towards a Mexico side who can potentially cause problems in the air against opposition who conceded from a header against the Czechs and were fortunate it didn't happen twice.
Goals Under/Over
The bookies are leaning towards Under 2.5 Goals when it comes to the two options for this Group A showdown. The price is hovering around the 1.57 mark which is substantially odds-on. There's around a 65% chance of this happening and it's easy enough to see a tight contest between sides who would move on to four points with an outcome such as a goalless draw or a 1-1 scoreline.
However, it needs to be noted that the two teams played out a 2-2 draw last autumn. They also both scored two goals apiece in their World Cup opening matches. We know that South Korea are vulnerable defensively and it remains to be seen whether Mexico are the same considering that they were not tested by South Africa in the slightest.
The game could easily become a bit of a shootout and we certainly wouldn't be leaning towards the Unders based on the stats available.
BTTS
There's a case for punting the BTTS Yes option as the outsider of the two. South Korea scored two goals against Czechia and their Expected Goals came in at 2.30. Therefore, we might expect the Asian side to cause Mexico a few problems. It's not in their make-up to keep things too tight considering that defending isn't their strong point.
Back in September, they put two goals past the United States before playing out a 2-2 draw with Mexico and there are plenty of players who can chip in with the goals. The slight concern is that Son Heung-Min hasn't been firing for some time and was withdrawn in the opener against the Czechs.
Mexico scoring is very likely according to the latest odds. El Tri were only able to register an XG of 1.46 against South Africa, with the team gifted their opener before the Jimenez header doubled their advantage. Interestingly, the XG against them was only 0.07 but that just reflects how below par their opponents happened to be on that occasion.
First Goalscorer
Julián Quiñones was the scorer of the first 2026 World Cup goal, with the 29-year-old having been born in Colombia before becoming repatriated for Mexico. He's got a sharp goal rate for Al-Qadsiah with a return of fifty-three goals across fifty-nine games for the Saudi Arabian outfit. We're expecting more from him and he could rank as a great bet to find the net once again.
Then we have Raul Jimenez who was finally able to break his World Cup duck when he produced a headed finish to confirm Mexico's victory on the opening night. There have been forty-six goals across 125 appearances for the new Wolves man, with the 35-year-old now bidding to get on a scoring run in this competition.
Roberto Alvarado is expected to retain his place on the right side of the attack, with the South Koreans likely to continue with Son Heung-Min in the centre forward position. The Los Angeles FC striker was a star for Tottenham Hotspur although he's not made the desired impact since switching to the MLS in the United States.
Oh Hyeon-gyu came off the bench to score the winner against the Czechs, with Hwang In-beom having equalised and there's simply plenty of South Koreans who are able to make an impact in front of goal.