‘s Copa America opener against got a little dicey at times, that leaves them on track to reach the knockout stages of the month-long tournament.
Their next match against Venezuela, also a first-game winner, could decide Group B. This is important because the runner-up in this group is likely to face , the world’s best team, in a knockout stage game.
The bad news is that the team will likely be , who left the Jamaica opener clutching his hamstring.
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When does Mexico play Venezuela in the Copa America?
The match is set for 7 p.m. Mountain time Wednesday, June 26 at SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, Calif.
Where is the match on TV?
It will be televised on FOX Sports 1.
How is Mexico supposed to do against Venezuela?
El Tri is a slight +120 favorite to win this group-stage match, Venezuela is +255 and the draw is +205.. The over-under on goals is 2.5, what it is for most games, so Mexico is supposed to win 2-0 or 2-1.
Mexico is ranked 15th in while Venezuela is 54th.
What are the stakes?
The Group B winner likely avoids a quarterfinal against Argentina so this becomes a big match. Venezuela scored two goals in its opening win against , so it has a slight tiebreaker edge over Mexico, which would become a bigger edge if this game ends in a tie. If that happens Mexico would need to make up goal differential in its last game against Ecuador when Venezuela is playing Jamaica.
If Mexico wins, it wouldn’t necessarily clinch advancement to the knockout round, but it could and at any rate would be overwhelming favorites to get there at some point.
If El Tri loses, they would still be in good shape to advance to the knockout round with a closing win against Ecuador but would be long odds to avoid Argentina in the quarterfinals.
What is El Tri’s schedule?
June 22, Mexico 1, Jamaica 0
7 p.m. Mountain time, June 26 vs. Venezuela, SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, Calif.
5 p.m. Mountain time, June 30 vs. Ecuador, State Farm Stadium, Glendale, Ariz.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at [email protected]; @Bretbloomquist on Twitter.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: