The first games in the CONMEBOL Qualifiers left some points to talk about, which will no doubt be relevant to the action set to take place on Tuesday.
The first certainties after last week's games came courtesy of Brazil and Argentina, who do not seem to hve any problems to beat their opponents as long as Neymar and Lionel Messi are around. Other teams, such as Uruguay and Colombia, seem to be ready to challenged the above mentioned teams to the top spot, even if they are also undergoing changes within their squads. Others, such as Chile and Bolivia, need to step it up before they miss out on the top six spots, which could be quite embarrassing especially for the former Copa América winners in 2015 and 2016.
Matchday 2 in CONMEBOL will bring us a couple of tough visits for those in the lead, and if Argentina have to make do without their finest performer, things could get a bit ugly for La Albiceleste in what has been a tough venue to overcome historically.
Here are the standings in CONMEBOL's World Cup Qualifiers after Matchday 1
Without further delay, here's how the games will take place in coming hours
Bolivia vs Argentina - Led by Lionel Messi, Argentina kept their impressive form in WC Qualifying matches with a narrow but deserved win against Ecuador. Meanwhile, Bolivia were no match for Brazil, who defeated La Verde 5-1 without breaking a sweat. Now, Bolivia will want to put an end to Argentina's dominance against them by using the harsh conditions in La Paz to their favor. It's been six years since Bolivia's last win against Argentina, who have won three in a row against La Verde by scoring nine and conceding twice in those fixtures.
While everything seems to be in place for another winning day for Argentina, Lionel Messi's exit from their first fixture could be a slight problem, as "La Pulga" could miss out on this game if an injury on the superstar is confirmed. Either way, the opening game for Matchday 2 will be quite fun to watch, even if the Messi is not around to defend the honor of the 2022 World Cup winners.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Ecuador vs Uruguay - La Tricolor started off the Qualifiers on the wrong foot, and with their points deduction over Byron Castillo's case, the team led by Félix Sánchez must avoid another loss that makes their road to North America even more complicated. On the other hand, Uruguay were off to a promising start with a comfortable win over Chile, giving Marcelo Bielsa the necessary time to imprint his idea on a squad full of young talent.
La Tri are undefeated in their last three games against Uruguay in World Cup Qualifying matches held in their country, including a 4-2 win in their most recent fixture. Nevertheless, Uruguay have beaten them in 28 of their 42 fixtures, meaning that La Celeste has found a way to have the upper hand over the yellow and blue side, who can't afford another loss if they want to keep themselves in the race for the top spots.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Venezuela vs Paraguay - La Vinotinto may have lost their first game of the Qualifiers, but there were massive signs of improvement in this team. The same cannot be said about Paraguay, who failed to score against Peru and saw their first game ending in a goalless draw. That being said, the Albirroja will not have an easy time collecting all the points here, even if their recent history shows no wins for Venezuela since 2017.
Shockingly enough, Venezuela have failed to win a World Cup Qualifying match against Paraguay held in their own country since 2001, but judging by what we saw last week, the time could be here for them to earn their first three points in front of their supporters after two decades. Maybe coach Fernando Batista is able to steer them to victory with his tactics against former Boca Juniors star Guillermo Barros Schelotto.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Chile vs Colombia - La Roja was one of the most disappointing teams in the first day of action, following their 3-1 loss to Uruguay without even putting up a fight. Meanwhile, Colombia were able to survive their first game with a win against Venezuela, putting themselves amongst the leaders after one game.
The Chileans face a golden chance to redeem themselves in front of their fans, which would also see them beat Los Cafeteros for the first time at home in a WC Qualifier in their country since 2008. Colombia are unbeaten against La Roja in their last three games (1 win, two draws), and if they can repeat a similar outing as the one they had against Venezuela, we can rest assured that this will be an entertaining fixture to follow.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
Peru vs Brazil - The current leaders in CONMEBOL's WC Qualifiers make it to Peru to face Juan Reynoso's team after a 5-1 win over Bolivia. Their hosts, on the other hand, will want to prove that allowing Ricardo Gareca to leave was not a massive mistake, and facing the Verdeamarelha side at home could be a good way of measuring how adequate that decision was.
Winning will not be an easy task for Peru, mainly because Brazil have beaten them in eight of their nine most recent competitive matches. The only win for the Peruvian side against Brazil came in neutral ground, when the white and red claimed a one-nil win over A Canarinha back in the 2016 Copa América. If Peru can overcome the absences of Luis Advíncula and Alexander Callens, then Reynoso's men could give us quite a surprise, but if Neymar and Co. get their game faces on, it could be a tricky match for the hosts.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
Live TV coverage and streaming in United States
