World Cup 2018 Standings: Predicting Wednesday's Scores, Results, Updated Tables

Brazil and defending champions Germany could exit the 2018 FIFA World Cup if results go against them on Wednesday, with the two pre-tournament favourites being one poor result from humiliation in Russia.

Germany are second in Group F, three points off leaders Mexico ahead of their clash against South Korea at the Kazan Arena, where a win is required if they are to have any hope of advancing as pool winners.

They are level with Sweden on points, goals scored and goals conceded heading into their last group game, and they would need Janne Andersson's side to beat El Tri by a big enough margin—while winning themselves—to take first place.

Brazil lead Group E but may not have anticipated facing Serbia in their first-round curtain call with only goal difference keeping them above Switzerland, who are second.

The Swiss will be expected to beat Costa Rica but could even take top spot with a draw, which puts pressure on the Selecao.

Read on as we preview some of Wednesday's most promising fixtures, complete with score predictions and a projected outlook for the group tables.

Wednesday's Fixtures/Predictions

Group E

Mexico 2-0 Sweden, 5 p.m. local time/3 p.m. BST/10 a.m. ET 

South Korea 1-3 Germany, 7 p.m. local time/3 p.m. BST/10 a.m. ET

Group F

Serbia 2-2 Brazil, 9 p.m. local time/7 p.m. BST/2 p.m. ET

Switzerland 1-1 Costa Rica, 9 p.m. local time/7 p.m. BST/2 p.m. ET

Projected Group Standings (Goal Difference)

Group E

1. Brazil: 5 (+2)

2. Switzerland: 5 (+1)

3. Serbia: 4 (0)

4. Costa Rica: 1 (-3)

Group F

1. Mexico: 9 (+4)

2. Germany: 6 (+2)

3. Sweden: 3 (-2)

4. South Korea: 0 (-3) 

Visit the official FIFA website for the full standings.

Preview

Toni Kroos' last-gasp winner in Germany's 2-1 triumph over Sweden on Saturday means Mexico's path to the round of 16 is slightly more complicated, but just a point for El Tri on Wednesday is enough to secure top spot.

The Deutsche Presse-Agentur produced a graphic explaining all the possible permutations heading into the final round of Group F fixtures, where any of the four teams can qualify (h/t Goal's Ronan Murphy):

Finishing above the world champions would be a historic achievement for Mexico head coach Juan Carlos Osorio and his team.

Meanwhile, Die Mannschaft are motivated to avoid what would be just their second World Cup exit in the first round—the other occurred in 1938.

Manager Joachim Low confirmed on Tuesday that Mats Hummels has recovered but a broken nose has left Sebastian Rudy sidelined.

South Korea manager Shin Tae-yong, on the other hand, appeared more downcast in his assessment of his team's chances following successive defeats, per football writer Rik Sharma:

Despite their struggles, there's a sense of inevitability that Germany—often so roundly praised for their mental strength—will produce the desired response when the pressure is on to advance, though not at the top of their pool.

Brazil's chances of doing so look far brighter by comparison. A win over Serbia will not guarantee first place in Group E as they still need to better Switzerland's result against Costa Rica, but the team are being sent off in the right fashion by their fans, via Copa90:

Lasting power has been a struggle for Serbia in both their outings—a 1-0 win over Costa Rica followed by a 2-1 defeat to the Swiss—although the same could be said for Brazil, who need to get a real cushion under them before they think of easing off.

Switzerland will look to make a statement against Costa Rica to boost their goal difference and take top spot, although Los Ticos are tougher than their pointless run in Group E would suggest.