Mexico vs. Guatemala: Date, Time, Live Stream and 2015 Friendly Preview

Mexico’s preparation for the Copa America will kickstart in earnest at the Estadio Victor Manuel Reyna on Saturday as Miguel Herrera’s El Tri face Guatemala in an international friendly.

The end of the domestic season in Europe will give the Mexico boss a chance to set the wheels in motion ahead of the Chile showpiece, and he selected an intriguing squad of players desperate to make an impression for this encounter with the CONCACAF outfit.

Here’s all the information you need on where to catch this one, as Herrera looks to replicate this team’s World Cup exploits in their continental competition.

Date: Saturday, May 30

Time: 6 p.m. (ET)

Live Stream: beIN Sports Connect (US)

Copa Preparations an Opportunity to Impress

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Herrera will go into this friendly against Guatemala as well as the upcoming clashes with Peru and Brazil with plenty of decisions to make about which personnel will make it into his XI for their opening Copa contest against Bolivia.

Encouragingly for the popular head coach, there’s a lot of depth in this squad. There are also plenty of players who have blossomed into exciting talents since the World Cup, and as such, El Tri will be quietly confident of making steady progress in Chile.

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Raul Jimenez is certainly one player to look out for in these encounters. Although he’s been on the periphery of the Atletico Madrid squad for the majority of this season, he has the class to cause any defence problems on his day and is the kind of character who will relish playing a key role in this side.

Here’s a reminder of just how effective he can be:

The forward will add incision and a major goalscoring threat, but expect his influence to be supplemented by a bolstered back line and midfield. Rafa Marquez, despite his advancing years, is likely to play a critical role after a recent renaissance of sorts with Hellas Verona in Serie A.

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The 36-year-old will be tasked with gluing together an inexperienced squad, which contains only three players from European clubs. But, as was evident in Brazil last summer, what the former Barcelona man may now lack in athleticism, he has made up for with his refined defensive instincts.

In midfield, there are plenty of options and a chance for Javier Aquino to force his way back into Herrera’s plans. The Rayo Vallecano man was once the great hope of Mexican football before his stock tailed off; after a season on loan at Franjirrojos, he’ll be desperate to make an impact of sorts with the national squad.

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With the Gold Cup on the horizon, the Copa may not be Mexico’s most pertinent concern. But a much-changed squad is likely to yield plenty of opportunities for a host of fringe players who will be keen on forcing their way into the reckoning for El Tri’s priority event further down the line.

Even this secondary squad will have too much for Guatemala in this encounter. Herrera will be hoping that with plenty of players hungry to impress, this team will turn in a classy performance for what is always a raucous set of Mexican supporters.

Prediction: Mexico 3-1 Guatemala