The 3-0 victory of the Colombian team against the Bolivian national team for the 17th date of the qualifiers keeps alive the illusion of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. In the absence of a day, the 'Tricolor' no longer has the option of securing a direct quota to the orbital event; however, it will fight the repechage against Peru and Chile, which appear in the fifth and seventh boxes, respectively.
The victory over 'La Verde' allowed Colombia to rise to sixth place with 20 points, in addition to improving their goal difference. Initially, the compromise was tight, as Bolivia chose to defend itself in its own field and fight back, if given the opportunity. It was until the 39th minute that Luis Díaz was able to open the score with an individual play. Miguel Borja (72′) and Mateus Uribe (90′) closed the harvest for the 'Tricolor', which he won again after seven matches.
As usual, the SofaScore portal, specialized in football statistics, announced the most outstanding players of the day, based on the ratings that each one received. The novelty is that there are two Colombians: James Rodriguez, who received a score of 8.5, one of the highest on the date, and William Tesillo, who scored 7.3.
One of the novelties was precisely the absence of Díaz, as he marked and also assisted in the triumph of Colombia. Even, the guajiro received a high rating on other websites and, for many users, it represented the highest point among the individual returns of the national team.
The ideal eleven for matchday 17 is completed by Sergio Rochet (Uruguay); Ronald Araújo (Uruguay), Fabian Balbuena (Paraguay), Guilherme Arana (Brazil); Rodrigo De Pau l (Argentina), Angel Di Maria (Argentina), Neymar (Brazil), Lionel Messi (Argentina) and Julio Enciso (Paraguay).
Messi was the footballer who earned the highest rating with 9.3 points. The Argentine star of Paris Saint-Germain scored the third and final goal of his national team in the victory against Venezuela at La Bombonera. The second and third place is shared by Di Maria and James, both with 8.5 qualifications.
The Colombian team's sights are now set on Venezuela, which will be its rival next Tuesday at the end of the qualifying rounds, in the face of a potential quota for the repechage. Those led by Reinaldo Rueda must prevail against 'Vinotinto' regardless of the score to reach the figure of 23 points and hope that Peru does not win in Lima against Paraguay.
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It should be noted that if they win on Venezuelan soil, the result between Chile and Uruguay goes to the background, as the Australs have 19 units and, if they beat the 'Celeste', they will reach 22. Meanwhile, a victory for the 'Incas' against Paraguay will leave Colombia without a chance to play the repechage to go to the World Cup, as they would score 24 points and become unattainable.
After the well-known loss of Juan Guillermo Cuadrado due to accumulation of yellow cards, the 'Tricolor' will not be able to count on Alfredo Morelos, striker of the Scottish Rangers. This was reported this Saturday by the Colombian Football Federation (FCF) in a statement:
“After medical examinations of player Alfredo Morelos, he confirmed a muscle injury to his left thigh, which does not allow him to participate in the next match of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Qatar 2022. For this reason, the striker is called off to start his recovery work. We wish the player a good return to his club”, states the communication.
It is noteworthy that Morelos was also not taken into account by the national strategist in the 3-0 victory against the Bolivian team, due to muscle overload.
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