Qualified for the last two editions of the World Cup, the Colombian selection no longer has its destiny in its hands to qualify for Qatar.
The atmosphere in Qatar next winter is about to take a hit. Back to the wall and condemned to hope for favorable results elsewhere, Colombia could well miss the plane for the World Cup, where a provided delegation is used to dressing the stands in the yellow of the Selection and ignite the spans with “Yes you can !” (“Yes we can”). Sixth in the qualifying rankings for the South America zone, Colombia will need a miracle to claim to fly to the Emirate. Already assured of not qualifying directly (only the first four are qualified: Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador and Uruguay), the Colombian selection must win in Venezuela on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday (1h30), while hoping for a false not from Peru at the same time against Paraguay.
If winning in the red lantern does not seem insurmountable for the Tricolorit is especially on the side of Lima, where Peru receives a Paraguay already eliminated for a month (8e), you will have to be careful. Well, not during the match: “We must protect ourselves from secondary results before these finally lead us to our goal.Colombian coach Reinildo Rueda insisted on Sunday. We don’t have to worry or inform the players, we have to focus on an already very demanding match.»
It’s a difficult time, with a lot of anxiety and a lot of emotion
Reinildo Rueda, Colombia coach
The coffee growers (coffee producers) will therefore be invited to focus only on a cleaver match while being suspended on the result of another meeting before imagining a possible great happiness. A scenario well known to the final stages of the World Cup and other international competitions, but always a source of stress for the teams concerned. “We have arrived at a stage that we would have preferred to avoid, agrees the technician. It’s a difficult moment, with a lot of anxiety and a lot of emotion.»
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Falcao and James, symbols of an aging and half-mast attack
But how did they come to play their future together in a country where they have not won for 25 years, while crossing their fingers for an improbable failure in Peru? Well, by laying down arms against this same Peru, passed before the Tricolor at the cost of a narrow victory at the end of January (0-1). Ultra-dominant (30 shots, 70% possession), Colombia had lost at home on the only attempt on target from the visitors. It is also and above all the offensive clumsiness of the Colombians which failed them, while only 2 shots out of 30 found the frame.
A crippling clumsiness for Radamel Falcao and company, who remained on 7 qualifying matches without finding the net before the victory of hope against Bolivia on Friday (3-0). A victory which bore the seal of the new local nugget, Luis Diaz (25), in full explosion in Liverpool, which suggests that the South American nation still trains excellent football players.
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Because the rest remains aging, like the “Tiger” Falcao, silent since the second day of the elimination phase, October 14, 2020. Now 36 years old, the former Monegasque represents in spite of himself the twilight golden generation of the Colombia, exciting at the 2014 World Cup (eliminated by Brazil, host country, in the quarters), and again qualified in 2018 (eliminated in the eighth by England, on penalties).
Two great performances achieved under the leadership of José Pekerman, now coach… of Venezuela. During his six years as head of coffee growers, the Argentinian by birth had notably drawn the best from the generation of James Rodriguez, a real revelation of a 2014 World Cup where he finished top scorer (6 goals). Aged 30 and now exiled in Qatar, the former Real Madrid player certainly still has many good years ahead of him, but his influence is now limited in this aging workforce (27.8 years on average, second oldest workforce in South America). A workforce that could well see the train of the World pass for the last time.
