Unless a miracle happens, Colombia and Brazil will be the two teams that qualify for the quarterfinals of the Copa América. coffee growerson a Friday afternoon in which everything went well, they obtained their second victory by beating Costa Rica 3-0, while the team from Rio, just a few hours later, beat Paraguay 4-1 and overcame the points they lost in the tie in their debut against the Central Americans. The match this Tuesday at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara (California) will be an excuse for both teams to measure their true level with a strong rival in their efforts to go far in the competition, which will be easier for the one who finishes first in the group because in the next round they will avoid Uruguay, one of the teams called to fight for the title.
Colombia is in better shape for the third and final match, but that doesn’t mean it’s the favourite to win. The class of the Brazilians, even in their darkest hours, is indisputable and the quality of their players can come to light at any moment. An example of this mystique was Vinicius’ performance against the Paraguayans. The game was close, with a Paraguayan defence that didn’t give up any space for the attack. greenyellowand the Real Madrid player was the most incisive, trying to break through the resistance and score his country’s first goal in this edition. He opened the scoring and scored another before half-time, definitively putting Brazil on track to win and dispelling the noise that existed around the team, of which Ronaldinho said he was not interested in watching “just one game” because “they lack grit, joy.”
For the Colombians, the hope of going far is not pinned on a single player. Although Luis Díaz is the player with the best present, being an undisputed starter at Liverpool, several of his teammates are having superlative performances, perhaps going through the best period of their careers. The clearest examples are Daniel Muñoz and Jefferson Lerma, from Crystal Palace; Camilo Vargas, from Atlas de Guadalajara, and Jhon Arias, from Fluminense de Río de Janeiro. A separate chapter deserves James Rodríguez, who leads the team’s offensive creation process and is rediscovering the level seen in Brazil 2014. Although his connection with Sao Paulo is in limbo, with more criticism than praise recently, every dangerous play in the Colombian team has to go through his left foot. He has completed three assists in two games, leading this category in the Copa América, and he is going for more.
The historic gap that always separated the two nations in football has narrowed more than ever. The difference in their trophy cabinets is evident – Colombia has only one title, the 2001 Copa América; Brazil, on the other hand, has nine continental trophies and five World Cups – but on the field there is no disparity in talent. In fact, the last time they faced each other, in November of last year, the Colombians were victorious thanks to a double by Luis Díaz at the Metropolitano stadium in Barranquilla. It was the first time that Colombia beat Brazil in the CONMEBOL qualifiers. In the table of those qualifiers, the present of James Rodríguez and his teammates is also more promising: they are third with 12 points, surpassing Brazil’s 7, which is sixth.
Brazilian captain Danilo da Silva did not hesitate to describe his rivals as “a great team”. “It will be a difficult game, because they have very important players,” he added in a press conference after the second match. Coach Dorival Júnior did the same. “Their evolution is very great, we will have a very high-level match. They are two rivals who already know each other very well,” he commented. The prize they are after, given that it is highly probable that even if they lose they will make it to the next phase, is a less difficult rival. They must win if they want to be first in the group and face Panama, temporarily avoiding Marcelo Bielsa’s Uruguay, who they will eventually meet in the semi-finals. The Charrúas, led by Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde, won their group without suffering and with a wide superiority.
Since Néstor Lorenzo took over as coach in Colombia in June 2022, he has not known what it is to lose. The national team has gone 25 games without defeat, including wins against Germany and Spain, and is a couple more away from breaking the record set between 1993 and 1994, when Carlos Kid Valderrama was the captain and Francisco Maturana the helmsman. It would not be unreasonable to think that Brazil will end the streak. They certainly have plenty of material. It will depend on what Vinicius can do in attack or if the Colombians’ passing game prevails.
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