The Argentina Under-17 team will face Mexico in the Round of 16 of the U-17 World Cup this Friday at 11:45 (Argentine time), seeking to prove why it was the top-ranked team in this new stage under the new format implemented by FIFA. The match will be played on Field 2 of the Aspire Zone complex in Doha, refereed by Italian Andrea Colombo, and broadcast by DSports and Public TV. The Argentine team arrives with a perfect record after a flawless first phase, in which they defeated Belgium (3-2), Tunisia (1-0), and Fiji (7-0), leading Group D with nine points and a goal difference of +9. In this way, it was the best team of the entire first round and earned the right to face the lowest-ranked of the third-place teams, Mexico, who advanced to this stage via fair play after tying on points, goal difference, and goals for and against with Saudi Arabia, but with fewer yellow and red cards. The 'Tri', led by Carlos Cariño, had an irregular performance in Group F: they fell to South Korea (2-1) and Switzerland (3-1), but managed to defeat Ivory Coast (1-0) on the final matchday, which allowed them to agonistically advance to the next round. Meanwhile, Argentina showed solid play, with good offensive volume and notable efficiency, consolidating itself as one of the strongest teams in the competition. The winner of this matchup will face the winner of Portugal vs. Belgium in the quarter-finals. Argentine coach Diego Placente, who in the last match against Fiji rotated the starting lineup to give minutes to some players who were on the bench and boost their confidence, will once again bet on his best and the team that would take to the field would be the same one that faced Tunisia in the second matchday. This would mean the return of Alber Castelau in goal, Matías Satas and Simón Escobar would retake their places on the left side of the defense, while in midfield, Alejandro Tello and Jerónimo Gómez Mattar, along with Felipe Esquivel in the attack, would round out the changes in the starting XI. Match Details U-17 World Cup Round of 16 Argentina – Mexico Stadium: Aspire Zone - Field 2, Doha. Referee: Andrea Colombo (Italy). Time: 11:45 / TV: DSports and Public TV. Possible Lineups Argentina: José Castelau; Misael Zalazar, Mateo Martínez, Matías Satas, Simón Escobar; Alejandro Tello, Gastón Bouhier; Jerónimo Gómez Mattar, Can Armando Güner; Thomás De Martis and Felipe Esquivel. Coach: Diego Placente. Mexico: Santiago López; Michael Corona, Félix Contreras, Ian Olvera, Adrián Villa; Óscar Pineda, Gael García, Iñigo Borgio, José Mancilla; Lucca Vuoso and Máximo Reyes. Coach: Carlos Cariño.
