The Colombia selection passed the first phase of the Copa América. He hopes to meet his next rival. His first round was marked by his victory against Ecuador and the great laboratory in Cardona’s goal; his inability to beat goalkeeper Faríñez from Venezuela; his defeat with Peru, and his fight against Brazil that ended in a fall.
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In general, these were 10 key points in the performance of the team of Reinaldo Rueda in his first round of the championship.
1. Missing a goal
There is no goal, not enough. The attackers of Colombia, scorers in their respective teams, have closed the arc in the National Team. Zapata, Muriel, Borré and Morelos are at zero. Borja did do his, but from a penalty. The poor definition, the anxiety and the pressure have the forwards in check. Colombia has made 16 shots on goal, and only 3 goals (Cardona, Borja and Díaz).
2. Game generation
Not only is it that the forwards do not define, but little is generated. The statistics indicate that he has only had 4 real options, out of the 3 goals. Cuadrado, Cardona and Díaz They are the ones who have had that task, but the generation depends more on individualities, a luxury or the game on the wings, especially on the right. The team seeks to solve the absence of ’10’.
3. Barrios, the pillar
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And to think that the era of Rueda as a substitute started. Well, Barrios has already recovered his position, the one that Cuéllar tried to have, which has already been displaced. Barrios played the 4 games of the first phase and was always key to destroy the rival game and, also, to support the entire team with his coverage and sweeps. It is the one that meshes the scheme of the Selection. A motor!
4. Square looks
Another player who has stood out has been Cuadrado. Installed as a steering wheel on the right, he is the one that guides the team and tries to generate play from there. He already made an assist on Diaz’s goal to Brazil. He played all four games and two of the tie. In the absence of James and Falcao, he assumes the leadership role on the team. But the quarterfinal phase is lost for yellow.
5. Hollow back
The defensive zone is still a matter of alert, especially against rivals who do attack. Against Brazil the defense did a perfect job until deconcentration at the end, when it failed to Ospina. Against Peru he failed in the rebounding zone and allowed one goal, and the other was an own goal. Although Mina and Sánchez are recovering their level, the defense still generates anxiety.
6. Tesillo, holder
One of the certainties of the first phase is that Rueda has defined his left back. William Tesillo, sometimes criticized and resisted, has taken a stand. Although the one who started the Cup was Yairo Moreno, who was injured, Tesillo is already taking hold. As central that he really is, he contributes to the defenders. Against Brazil he had an almost flawless game. The issue is that it contributes little in attack.
7. The tests
The first phase of the Cup served Rueda for rehearsals. Still no repeat alignment. In defense he has tried with Muñoz and Medina on the right side. On the far left, he has tried Cardona and Díaz. But his real testing phase is in the attack, where he has combined different options: Borja-Borré, Zapata-Muriel, Borja-Zapata and Zapata-Borré.
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8. Game system
Rueda’s tactical idea starts from the 4-4-2 system, which is his base. Thus, he tries to become strong in defense, with two lines very close together, and in attack he takes out their extremes to make a 4-2-2-2 or a 4-2-3-1, delaying one of the attackers, as did with Zapata thrown to the left so that Cardona was accommodated by the center, against Peru. The test that day was unsuccessful.
9. The base
Although the team is not fixed and, as has been said, tests have been carried out on the payroll, Reinaldo Rueda does have a column that is consolidating and which gives him continuity to find the memory he is looking for, with Ospina (360 minutes), Mina (360) Dávinson (278), Tesillo (315), Cuadrado (360), Barrios (360) and Matheus (241), which are the most stable for now.
10. No middle distance
I have such an effective weapon, and having men with a good punch like Cardona or Cuadrado himself, Colombia takes little advantage of the middle distance. In blocked parties, such as Peru, that was a resource that did not appear. That wow factor is missing. Nor have there been enough side fouls to take advantage of Mina’s passing game.
11. Force and defense equipment
The last match of the first round, against Brazil; the quarterfinal duel, against Uruguay, and the semifinal, against Argentina, the three colossi of the area, revealed the plan of Rueda’s team: defend, wait, run, score and hit. Especially in the semi-final, Colombia turned the match into a physical battle. The lack of technical play was compensated with strength and physical play. In all those games he committed more fouls than his rivals: 16-15 against Brazil, 17-12 against Uruguay and 27-20 against Argentina.
12. A single win
In the absence of the match for third place against Peru (on Friday, July 9); Colombia has played six games in this Copa América with a balance of one victory (over Ecuador), two defeats (against Peru and Brazil) and three draws (Venezuela, Uruguay and Argentina). In a points system, such as the 2022 World Cup qualifier in Qatar, the balance of six points out of 18 possible is low. A yield of only 33 percent. Ties against the powers Uruguay and Argentina are acceptable. The defeat against Peru and the draw against Venezuela generate the gap.
13. Díaz, Cardona and goal
In the general context of being a Colombian team of defense, strength and fight, and without a goal, Luis Díaz stood out for his technical condition, for his overflow and for his two annotations: a Chilean goal against Brazil and a career and skill goal against Argentina. Cardona, Colombia’s only creative midfielder in the Cup, lost his place in the starter, but had two key moments: he scored the 1-0 goal against Ecuador and assisted Diaz in the score against Argentina.
Edwin Cardona missed the shot and Argentina qualified for the final of the Copa América.
EFE / Joedson Alves
14. Sin James#
In the midst of the fight, testosterone and strength, the team lacked generation of play and when it had options to score, in general the forwards failed. The possibility of James Rodríguez leaving the team is suspended and open. Absent due to a technical decision in the midst of a controversy over the recovery of an old soleus injury, his option to be called for the next round of the tie is unknown because his relationship with the coach seems broken, despite the fact that Rueda does not has been ruled out for the future.
15. Competitive team
Colombia showed that it is a competitive team and that for the tie it is in a frank fight and with options to get one of the four direct spots or the option to play the play-off that will have the fifth classified from South America. It is a group penetrated in its solidarity and delivery approach and that has three specific points to correct: the definition of the gunners, greater generation of offensive play in the middle of the field and specific doubts given by the central defender pair.
It may interest you: (This was said by James about his support for the National Team on the Ibai Llanos channel)
PABLO ROMERO
Editor of EL TIEMPO
@PabloRomeroET
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