There is a wound in the hearts of the Colombian National Team fans that has not yet healed. The match against Uruguay, in the last qualifying round, was the first step towards elimination from Qatar 2022, a painful 0-3 in Barranquilla, with an empty stadium due to the pandemic and with a very poor performance.
Then came the 6-1 in Quito, the departure of Carlos Queiroz, the seven games without scoring a goal and the pain of being left out.
This Thursday, the panorama is different: people return to Metropolitan Roberto Meléndez; The illusion of returning to a World Cup returns, with a tie that is very different, with two more direct places, and Uruguay returns, with a renewed squad, but with the same difficulty as always. The match will be seen on Caracol and RCN, starting at 3:30 in the afternoon.
The demand increases for the Colombian National Team
This may be the National Team’s biggest challenge so far in the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup in North America. Left behind are the willful but innocent Venezuela and a Chilean team that lives off the remnants of its glory years.
Colombia faces a tough rival, which comes with the thorn of losing in Quito against Ecuador, and with a climatic factor that, historically, played against it in Barranquilla. The 0-3 in 2020 was atypical in every sense.
Training of the Colombian National Team
Photo:
Vanexa Romero/ El Tiempo
The matter was even a topic of conversation between the figures of the two teams, Luis Díaz and Darwin Núñez, who arrived together in Barranquilla from Liverpool.
“He (Núñez) knows that the heat issue is tough, that it is hard to play at that time. He took well what I told him about the temperature. Now it’s his turn for the best to win. “We are going to go look for the result,” said the Colombian attacker.
Colombia has practically its entire starting defense on the outside. Daniel Muñoz, Yerry Mina, Jhon Lucumí and Jéfferson Lerma are injured. Coach Néstor Lorenzo calls on several experienced players, such as Santiago Arias, Dávinson Sánchez and, possibly, Wílmar Barrios to stop the Uruguayan attack.
“They are in a new process. They have a lot of youth, a lot of desire to succeed in their team. We are growing, we try to improve every time we are together and thus find out what the teacher wants. They have good, important players in Europe,” Barrios said at a press conference.
Néstor Lorenzo and Wílmar Barrios
Photo:
Raúl Arboleda. AFP
If Colombia manages to keep its house in order, qualification for the 2026 World Cup will be easier than expected. But the eliminatory is always difficult. Colombia has a thorn in its heart. Today a nice revenge could come.
Jose Orlando Ascension
Sports Deputy Editor
@josasc
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2023-10-12 04:06:19
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