Oh Canada! The North American nation’s expanding soccer fandom will be on fire on Friday, March 25 when the Canadian men’s national team looks to reach CONCACAF’s Hexagonal round for the first time since 1997. Mexico enters this match looking to clinch their spot in the Hex with a victory. After two games in the semifinal round of qualifying, Mexico and Canada sit in first and second place in Group A, after Mexico opened with a pair of easy wins in November, while Canada beat Honduras 1-0 at home and earned a 0-0 draw in El Salvador. An upset win at BC Place would put Canada in first place in the group.
However, no matter who comes out on top in this intriguing affair, it’s going to be downright special. With over 46,000 tickets sold a week before the match, this match will shatter records for a home World Cup qualifier in Canadian history. Now, let’s take a look at the soccer odds as we try to find out who’s going to win this match in front of what will likely be a sellout crowd at Vancouver’s BC Place.
Canada vs Mexico Soccer Betting Prediction
Date/Time: Friday, March 25, 10 pm ET, BC Place, Vancouver
TV: TSN in Canada, UniMas in the US
Odds: Mexico -300 Canada +650
Draw: +340
Total: 2.5
Why You Should Bet on Canada
Friday’s match is Canada’s second of the year, following a last-minute 1-0 loss to the United States in a February friendly. The Canadians could control their own destiny by beating Mexico twice as a pair of victories would propel them into second place in the group, though that scenario is highly unlikely.
Canadian manager Benito Floro has been preaching defense during his nearly three years at the helm, but the Canadians will need to find ways to get star striker Cyle Larin shots if they want to have a chance at the upset. The good news is that Larin is playing stellar soccer in his sophomore season with Orlando City SC. 25-year-old midfielder Junior Hoilett has quickly become the face of the Canadian program and rightfully so. Hoilett will need to get a few quality shot attempts if Canada is to pull off the upset.
Why You Should Bet on Mexico
Last year, the Mexican team had one of the wildest runs to the Gold Cup title in tournament history. Mexico punched their ticket to the 2017 Confederations Cup by taking a extra-time matchup against the Americans in October.
Mexico is a strong favorite to easily win Group A in the semifinal round, and will likely clinch their spot in the Hex by the end of this month, leaving Canada, Honduras and El Salvador scrambling for the second and final spot in the group. Friday’s match is also Mexico’s second contest of the calendar year, after a 2-0 win in a friendly against Senegal in February.
Mexico’s Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez, the “little pea,” presents big problems for Canada’s defenses on Friday evening. The 27-year-old has been playing like a new man since a move to Bayer Leverkusen reinvigorated his career while helping home become one of the Bundesliga’s top scorers with 14 goals in 21 appearances.
Expert Prediction and Pick
In 12 meetings since 1990, Mexico has won seven times, three games have been drawn and Canada has won twice (including their famous golden-goal victory at the 2000 Gold Cup).
Having said that, let me say that there’s also a reason why Mexico is such a big favorite in this match and it’s because they’re simply better in every phase of the game, not to mention, far more experienced than their North American counterparts.
Mexico gets the road win 2-1.
