A tough semi-final beckons in the Uruguay vs Colombia clash as the Bank of America Stadium in North Carolina hosts two teams who have deserved their semi-final place.
Colombia is coming off a resounding 5-0 win over Panama which allowed Nestor Lorenzo to rest a lot of his key players after halftime. Uruguay on the other hand had to pass a gruelling test to get past Brazil.
Record Chasing Uruguay
Los Celeste is still on course to achieve the dream of clinching a record breaking 16th Copa America trophy, there’s just the small matter of beating a Colombian team that hasn’t tasted defeat in 27 games. If they can do that, they face Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the finals.
But they will have to do it without defensive lynchpins Ronald Araujo, who picked up a first-half injury against Brazil that likely means he’ll miss the remainder of the competition, and Nahitan Nandez who picked up a red card in the second half. Gimenez of Athletico Madrid and Guillermo Varela, formerly of Manchester United, would likely be replacements at the back.
Uruguay have conceded one goal all tournament and will take solace in the fact that even after losing two of their defenders they were still able to shut out Brazil for 120 minutes.
Marcelo Bielsa will not compromise on his side’s attacking football regardless of their defensive situation. The coach said:
Football is a competition and we are always trying to impose what we do best and our opponent will do the exact same thing.
If we didn’t try to impose what we do best, we would actually be undermining our own chances.
They will, however, be facing a very stern test in Colombia.
Red Hot Tricolour
Nestor Lozano’s Colombian team has exceeded all expectations at Copa America 2024. They topped their group beating out Brazil and may very well be surprise favorites for Wednesday’s game based on current form and considering Uruguay’s current defensive issues.
They’re on an unprecedented 27-game unbeaten run and until their 1-1 draw against Brazil in the group fixture were on a 10-match winning streak. Should they win against Uruguay they will set a new record for their longest unbeaten streak.
Veteran James Rodrigues has also been in scintillating form all competition standing alongside Messi with 5 assists in this tournament, setting up 2 and scoring one in the 5-0 thrashing of Panama.
Lozano is well aware of the challenge Uruguay will pose and considers this game a final of sorts
“They are not passive. They go out for a win,” Lorenzo told reporters, speaking through an interpreter. “And I’m sure we’re going to have a good show on Wednesday.”
He will hope his well-rested team is ready to stifle and defeat a determined Uruguay team. Moreover, the approach Biesla’s team has shown in the competition so far is probably dangerous for any team. It will be a difficult task for Colombia to match those standards, which calls for an entertaining matchup.
Uruguay vs Colombia: Head-to-Head
The last 5 games between both teams have gone thus :
11 Oct 2016 Colombia vs Uruguay 2-2 (FIFA World Cup)
13 Nov 2020 Colombia vs Uruguay 0-3 (FIFA World Cup)
03 Jul 2021 Uruguay vs Colombia 0-0 (Copa America)
07 Oct 2021 Uruguay vs Colombia 0-0 (FIFA World Cup)
12 Oct 2023 Colombia vs Uruguay 2-2 (FIFA World Cup)
Uruguay vs Colombia: Possible lineups
Uruguay:
Rochet; Varela, Gimenez, Olivera, Vina; Valverde, Ugarte; Pellistri, De la Cruz, Araujo; Nunez
Colombia:
Vargas; Munoz, Sanchez, Cuesta, Mojica; Rios, Lerma; J. Arias, Rodriguez, Diaz; Cordoba
For More Great Content
Check out all the great content Total Apex Sports has to offer. Check us out on X @TotalApexSports and our other sites: Total Apex Sports Bets and Total Apex Fantasy Sports.
