Czechia
Mexico
Hosts Mexico have already won Group A with a perfect six points, while Czechia need a win at Estadio Banorte just to give themselves a real chance of sneaking through as one of the better third-placed sides. A loss against South Korea and a draw with South Africa have left Czechia with one point from two, conceding late in both games, and anything less than three points here is almost certainly the end of their tournament.
Czechia — Narodak
Miroslav Koubek looks set to stick with the same group that's started both games so far, with Ladislav Krejci captaining the side and Patrik Schick leading the line alongside Adam Hlozek. The lineup pencilled in here keeps the 3-5-2 shape, with Tomas Holes, Robin Hranac and Krejci across the back three and a five-man midfield of Vladimir Coufal, Vladimir Darida, Lukas Cerv, Michal Sadilek and Alexandr Sojka. David Jurasek is out for the rest of the tournament with a thigh injury sustained in training, and Jan Kuchta is a fitness question after returning from injury to the bench last time out.
Mexico — El Tricolor
Javier Aguirre has already secured top spot regardless of this result, and with qualification long since wrapped up, the lineup pencilled in here shows real rotation: Guillermo Ochoa in goal, Mateo Chavez, Johan Vasquez and Edson Alvarez across the back alongside Israel Reyes, and a midfield of Gilberto Mora, Luis Romo and Obed Vargas behind a front three of Alexis Vega, Santiago Gimenez and Cesar Huerta. Cesar Montes is back available after serving a one-match ban for his red card against South Africa, and reports suggest regulars like Alvarez, Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez could be rested entirely, though Alvarez's experience at the back is retained here even amid the wider changes. Mexico haven't won a knockout match in 40 years, but a perfect record and zero goals conceded so far says plenty about how this squad is performing.
Predicted Lineups
Key Battle
Patrik Schick vs Mexico's rotated back line. With several regulars rested, Mexico's defence here is less familiar with each other than the one that's kept a clean sheet through two games. Schick and Hlozek need to test that unfamiliarity early, because Czechia have shown a tendency to start games well before conceding late, and they can't afford to do that again with their tournament on the line.
Prediction
Mexico's rotation makes this more open than it would otherwise be, and Czechia's desperation could count for something in front of a partisan Mexico City crowd that won't be entirely on their hosts' side if things go flat. Even so, Mexico's overall quality and unbeaten record should be enough to see out a cagey affair.
Czechia 1–2 Mexico — Schick — Gimenez, Vega
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