{"id":45967,"date":"2026-03-28T13:21:50","date_gmt":"2026-03-28T07:51:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/?p=45967"},"modified":"2026-03-28T13:21:50","modified_gmt":"2026-03-28T07:51:50","slug":"mexico-vs-portugal-friendly-match-preview-potential-lineups-and-score-predictions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/football\/mexico-vs-portugal-friendly-match-preview-potential-lineups-and-score-predictions\/","title":{"rendered":"Mexico vs Portugal friendly: Match preview, potential lineups and score predictions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>As the World Cup getting closer, <strong>Mexico<\/strong> and <strong>Portugal<\/strong> meet for a big international friendly at the legendary Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Both teams want to sharpen their tactics and see how their squads hold up against tough competition.<\/p>\n<p>Mexico, led by <strong>Javier Aguirre<\/strong>, aren\u2019t at full strength some injuries have left holes in midfield and defense. So, Aguirre has to shuffle things around, and players like \u00c1lvaro Fidalgo and Erik Lira have a shot to prove themselves.<\/p>\n<p>Portugal\u2019s coach, Roberto Mart\u00ednez, rolls in <strong>without Cristiano Ronaldo<\/strong>, but the team still has plenty of talent. They mix young players with veterans, and they\u2019re eager to control the ball, set the pace, and show they can compete even without their superstar.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Potential lineup<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong>Mexico (4-3-3)<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Goalkeeper<\/strong>:-Carlos Acevedo Rangel<\/li>\n<li><strong>Defenders<\/strong>:Jorge S\u00e1nchez,\u00a0C\u00e9sar Montes,Johan V\u00e1squez, Jes\u00fas Gallardo<\/li>\n<li><strong>Midfielders<\/strong>:Luis Rodr\u00edguez,Erik Lira,\u00c1lvaro Fidalgo<\/li>\n<li><strong>Forwards<\/strong>:Roberto Alvarado, Ra\u00fal Jim\u00e9nez, Alexis Vega<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Portugal (4-2-3-1)<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Goalkeeper<\/strong>:Diogo Costa Silva<\/li>\n<li><strong>Defenders<\/strong>:Jo\u00e3o Cancelo,\u00a0Ronald Ara\u00fajo, Gon\u00e7alo In\u00e1cio, Nuno Mendes<\/li>\n<li><strong>Midfielders<\/strong>:R\u00faben Neves,Vitinha,Bruno Fernandes, Pedro Neto, Francisco Concei\u00e7\u00e3o<\/li>\n<li><strong>Forward<\/strong>:Paulinho<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><strong>Score Prediction<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Predicted Score: Mexico 2-2 Portugal<\/p>\n<p>Both sides have strong attacking options but slightly vulnerable defenses, which makes a draw the most balanced outcome. Mexico\u2019s home advantage and energy upfront, led by Ra\u00fal Jim\u00e9nez, could trouble Portugal early on.<\/p>\n<p>However, Portugal\u2019s creativity through Bruno Fernandes and pace from Pedro Neto is likely to produce goals as well. Expect an open, end-to-end game with both teams scoring and sharing the spoils.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>verdict<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>This friendly is more than just preparation it\u2019s a statement chance for both sides. Mexico will look to challenge a top European team at home, while Portugal aim to prove their depth and build cohesion.<\/p>\n<p>Expect a fast-paced, attacking game where midfield control will be key, and defensive gaps could lead to goals. Overall, it promises to be an exciting and competitive clash ahead of major tournaments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As the World Cup getting closer, Mexico and Portugal meet for a big international friendly at the legendary Estadio Azteca\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":502,"featured_media":45969,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[321,2732,3438,4372],"class_list":["post-45967","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-football","tag-cristiano-ronaldo","tag-fifa-club-world-cup","tag-portugal-football-team","tag-silva"],"reading_time":"2 min read","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45967","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/502"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45967"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45967\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45972,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45967\/revisions\/45972"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45967"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45967"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45967"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}