Mexico vs. Japan 8/6/21 Olympics 2021 Soccer Pick, Odds, and Prediction

Japan is hosting Mexico at Saitama Stadium 2002 in the 3^rd place match in the Olympics 2021 soccer tournament. Mexico was solid for most of the tournament, but they lost focus against Brazil in the semifinals, and it cost them. Of all the teams in this tournament, Japan was the most impressive, but Spain was just too much for them to handle in the semifinals.

Mexico has had a solid tournament, and while they were decent in the attacking end with 15 scored goals in 5 games, their defense just wasn’t good enough with 10 conceded goals. In their semifinal match against Brazil, Mexico has had only 33% of ball possession, 4 shots on goal, 5 corner kicks, 1 big chance created, and only 66% of the correct passes. Mexico wasn’t much of a threat in the attacking end, but their defense was outstanding. Both regular time and the overtime ended in a 0-0 draw, but the penalty shootout went Brazil’s way. Mexico has lost this match, and they failed to qualify for the finals. Cordova and Henry are the leading goalscorers for Brazil with 3 goals each, while Aguirre, Vega, and Romo added 2 goals each. After winning this tournament back in 2012., it would be nice for Mexico to win at least 3^rd place in this one, but it certainly won’t be easy.

Japan has conceded only 2 goals so far in this tournament, and the latest one has knocked them out of the finals. With 3 wins in the group stage and 1 more win in the knockouts, Japan reached the semifinals where they faced Spain. Japan has had only 31% of ball possession, 1 shot on goal, 5 corner kicks, 0 big chances created, and 77% of the correct passes. After defending really well for the entire match, Japan lost focus in the 115^th minute, and they conceded a goal. Japan has lost this match 0-1, and their dreams of gold have disappeared. Kubo is still the leading goalscorer for Japan with 3 goals. Overall, I think Japan has been the best team in this tournament, they have played well on both ends, and even though they are playing for bronze, winning it would have been a nice accomplishment for the home teams.

These two teams have met in the group stage, and Japan has won that match 2-1, and I expect the same result here. Both teams are exhausted after their semifinals game, but Japan is playing better soccer overall, especially on the defensive end, and I see them getting a nice win and 3^rd place.