After seeing Brazil force their way past Croatia in the opening encounter of Group A, both Mexico and Cameroon will want to start their FIFA World Cup 2014 sojourn on a winning note when the two sides meet at the Estadio Das Nunas in Natal on Friday.
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The Group A match is scheduled for a 1 pm local time (9.30 pm IST, 5 pm BST, 12 pm ET) start with live coverage on Sony Six and Sony Six HD in India. The game can also be watch via live streaming online HERE in India. Catch the action in the UK on ITV and BBC with the live streaming option HERE or HERE. US viewers can watch the game on ESPN while you can also live stream the action HERE. Australia viewers click HERE to watch the game online, while South Africa viewers can catch the match HERE.
The opening match of the World Cup had everything with Brazil producing a comeback victory over Croatia, albeit with a little bit of luck. Neymar was the star of the show for the hosts in that match, and it will be interesting to see which individual steps up come Friday.
With Brazil looking like a shoo-in for first place in Group B, both Mexico and Cameroon will know the importance of picking up early points.
"This is a window for all of us, for many of the players it's a huge opportunity to raise their level and for others to see us play," Mexico veteran Rafael Marquez told reporters on Thursday. "You don't get many chances to do that. That's what I always tell the lads. Our group is strong and in our minds we believe we can make it all the way to the final and make history."
Mexico, who have never failed to advance past the group stages, and Cameroon are seen as teams that are likely to finish third and fourth respectively in Group A, with Croatia, despite the 3-1 loss to Brazil, showing their quality in spades in the opening match of the tournament.
Neither side have particularly impressed coming into this tournament, with Cameroon, who have won just one match in their four previous World Cups after that epic quarterfinal appearance in 1990, in particular, fighting some battles off the field as well. The team's arrival to Brazil was delayed due to pay disputes with the country's football federation, which has been resolved but will still be wrangling a few.
Samuel Eto'o has been accused as being one of the instigators of the strike by the local Cameroon media, but it remains to be seen whether the vastly experienced striker can put all those worries behind him and inspire his country to an opening triumph.
"I think everybody knows Eto'o and his abilities," Cameroon midfielder Eyong Enoh said on Thursday. "He is our captain, our leader, he has a lot of experience and we hope he is in his best shape to lead us to victory.
"We know the Mexican team well, we worked a lot with the staff, but we are going to focus on our strengths and we are ready for tomorrow's game."
Team news: Mexico: Javier Hernandez will start from the bench against Cameroon, after coach Miguel Herrera, who announced his starting lineup on Thursday, decided to stick with the strike duo of Oribe Peralta and Giovani Dos Santos. Hernandez is coming off a terrible season with Manchester United, and will now have to bide his time before being given an opportunity to shine.
Cameroon: Coach Volker Finke is likely to stick to the majority of the first XI that played out a 2-2 draw with Germany in their last friendly, with Alexandre Song set to marshal the midfield, while Eto'o leads the line.
Expected lineups: Mexico: Ochoa; Aguilar, Rodriguez, Marquez, Moreno, Layun; Herrera, Vazquez, Guardado; Dos Santos, Peralta.
Cameroon: Itandje; Djeugoue, Matip, Nkoulou, Bedimo; Enoh, Song, M'bia; Moukandjo, Eto'o, Choupo-Moting.
Prediction: 1-1
