Mexico vs. Bolivia: Date, Time, Live Stream and 2015 Copa America Preview
The Chilean coast-line setting of Vina del Mar will play host to Mexico and Bolivia on Friday evening as the two teams prepare to collide in their 2015 Copa America opener.
Both teams find themselves situated in what looks likely to be a hotly contested struggle for Group A domination, with tournament hosts Chile and 2014 World Cup participants Ecuador being the other contenders.
Both Chile and Mexico exited last year's World Cup in the round of 16, but the Copa America provides the pair with another fine chance to go in search of silverware.
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We provide all the essential streaming information and match preview heading into Friday's fixture, where the pressure is on to produce a bright start to the competition.
Date: Friday, June 12
Time: 12:30 a.m. BST (Sat., June 13)/7:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Estadio Sausalito, Vina del Mar
Live Stream: beIN Sports Connect (U.S.)
Mexico Priorities Rest With Gold Cup
Although this year's Copa America comes to a close before the 2015 Gold Cup gets underway, Mexico chief Miguel Herrera has made the tough decision to place priority on the latter contest.
As shown by ESPN FC writer Tom Marshall, the vast majority of Mexico's European-based talent are being saved for the Gold Cup, presumably viewing that as a more realistic route to the 2017 Confederations Cup:
The supporters on hand in Chile would undoubtedly rather see Mexico at full strength, but the weakening of their squad does give La Roja a distinct advantage in Group A.
Realistically, it seems likely El Tri, alongside Bolivia and Ecuador, will be fighting it out for second and third place, and Marshall doesn't see Herrera's men making it far in the tournament:
Bolivia may well fancy their chances of claiming an opening victory, too, thanks to Mexico's diverted gaze, but after winning just one of the last 16 internationals (stretching back to March 2013), it's up for debate how likely that is.
Relying massively on the stars of Mexico's Liga MX, Herrera can hope to unearth a few gems from this second-string lineup, with 13 of his 23-man squad bringing 10 caps or fewer into the competition.
Balanced Group A Promising Fireworks
It may not boast world-class names across the board, but what Group A lacks in superstar figures, it makes up for in promise to be an incredibly tight contest.
Jorge Sampaoli's Chile will be looked upon as favourites to take top spot, but as pointed out by Messi Minutes, Ecuador could suffer from the absence of Antonio Valencia:
As aforementioned, Mexico's stretched attentions also bring them down a couple of pegs, and Bolivia's mostly home-based team will be glad of it.
Neutrals from all over can only hope the even spread of negative effects will result in a more finely weighted Group A campaign, and Chile would be wise to not let arrogance get the better of them.
