Bet £10, get £50 for our 26/1 Mexico vs South Africa bet builder tip
Sports Journalist at FST, Gareth qualified as a journalist after graduating from university and spent over a decade as a freelance broadcast journalist, commentator and tipster before joining FST. Now living in Manchester, he is a long suffering Bolton Wanderers fan who also enjoys boxing, the NBA, tennis and rugby league.
The opening game of World Cup 2026 sees co-hosts Mexico face South Africa at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on Thursday.
We’ve got the game covered in our dedicated Match Predictions section and our tipster is expecting El Tri to dominate.
Now I’ve delved into the player markets and have put together this 26/1 World Cup 2026 bet builder tip with Paddy Power, who are now counting attempts that are denied by the woodwork as shots on target.
Back our 26/1 Mexico vs South Africa Bet Builder here
Raul Jimenez 2+ Shots On Target (including woodwork)
Veteran Mexico striker Raul Jimenez will become his country’s joint-second all-time leading goalscorer if he scores against South Africa and he can record at least two attempts on target. Jimenez shot with an accuracy rate of around 25% in the Premier League with Fulham last season and should get plenty of chances against a fairly weak South Africa defence.
Julian Quinones 2+ Shots On Target (including woodwork)
Roberto Alvarado and Julian Quinones should join Jimenez in a Mexican attacking trio and the latter can also record at least two shots on target. Quinones averaged over a shot on target per-game in the Saudi Pro League this season in what was an exceptional campaign on a personal level. Quinones picked up the league’s top scorer award with 33 goals in just 31 games.
Yaya Sithole To Be Shown A Card
South Africa midfielder Yaya Sithole had six yellow cards in 26 league games for Portuguese outfit Tondela last season. He’s also had two bookings in his last six games for his country and looks a strong contender to be shown a card.
Brian Gutiérrez To Be Fouled 2+ Times
Brian Gutiérrez could be one of the young players to watch at World Cup 2026. The Illinois-born Mexico international is a tricky midfield playmaker and looks a candidate to be fouled at least twice. He was fouled on average over once per-game for Guadalajara last season and was fouled on average over once per-game during his time in MLS with Chicago Fire.
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