After finally ending a long wait for a major international title last summer, Portugal are now one of the main candidates to claim the 2017 Confederations Cup trophy.

CONCACAF giants Mexico also harbour championship ambition and they should be in better shape having recently contested two 2018 World Cup qualifiers.

It is fair to say that Portugal were not exactly outstanding on the road to the Euro 2016 title, but they did well to take advantage of the opportunity that presented itself.

The team have since continued the rich vein of form, although the opening defeat to Switzerland means they face an uphill task of securing an automatic qualifying berth for the 2018 World Cup.

Portugal were pretty impressive in the build up to the tournament in Russia, recording a 4-0 friendly win over Cyprus before winning the qualifier in Latvia (3-0), but this will clearly be a whole different ball game.

The good news is that Fernando Santos should have fully fit squad to select from, with Pepe and Cedric having recovered from injury.

There have been no major surprises in his Confederations Cup squad, with uncapped FC Porto goalkeeper Jose Sa the only newcomer.

Portugal have been made 11/10 favourites to defeat Mexico in their opening game, and the entire nation hopes Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo will have the right mindset in spite of his problems with Spanish authorities.

Probable starting line-up (4-4-2): Patricio – Cedric, Fonte, Pepe, Guerreiro – Bernardo Silva, William Carvalho, Moutinho, Andre Gomes – Andre Silva, Ronaldo.

Mexico have had a busy schedule this summer as they have already contested two important World Cup qualifiers, with Confederations Cup and Gold Cup tournaments also on the agenda.

That may not be such a bad thing as El Tri should be well prepared going into said competitions, and it is clear that the first of those has the priority.

Mexico have all but secured their place at the 2018 World Cup thanks to the win over Honduras and 1-1 draw with arch rivals USA, meaning they arrive in Russia in good spirits.

Head coach Juan Carlos Osorio has had some injury problems to contend with, and he drafted Jurgen Damm into the squad after Jesus Corona pulled out due to injury.

The good news is that veteran defender Rafa Marquez has recovered from a back problem and he will be in contention for the Portugal game.

Probable starting line-up (4-3-3): Ochoa – Salcedo, D. Reyes, Moreno, Alanis – J. dos Santos, Herrera, Fabian – Vela, Hernandez, Lozano.