Brazil will know their opposition for the showpiece final on Tuesday evening as unbeaten Argentina faces struggling Colombia in the second semifinal of the Copa America 2021. The final is dated on 10th July at the iconic Maracana stadium.
Argentina breezed past Ecuador 3-0 in the quarterfinals in another Lionel Messi show as the Barcelona superstar eye for his first senior international trophy with his country. Recently turned 34, the left-footed magician set up two goals for De Paul and Lautaro before netting the final goal of the match in injury time. A stylish performance reminding everyone of his desire to lift the trophy.
Stands in the way for Argentina are Colombia counting their chances after knocking out Uruguay on penalties. Both the teams in the quarterfinals created opportunities to score throughout 90 minutes but failed to turn the scoreboard. After a 0-0 end, penalties were inevitable as looked by the course of the game beforehand. Goalkeeper David Ospina turned out to be the hero of the shootout by saving penalties from Jose Gimenez and the deciding one from Mattias Vina to help his nation qualify for the semifinals.
Argentina vs Colombia Match Details :
When: July 7 (Wednesday), 2021
Timings: 04:30 (IST)/ 22:00 (local)
Where: Mane Garrincha Stadium, Brasilia, Brazil
Recent Form (Copa America)
Argentina: DWWWW
Colombia: WDLLD
ARG vs COL Dream11 Team News :
Injuries & Suspensions :
Neither of the sides are struggling with any injury concerns or suspension cautions. Like many teams in the competition, both will make changes to the starting eleven to use most of the players in the squad and remove fatigue. For Argentina, their frontline is once again prone to changes with Alejandro Gomez stepping in instead of Nicolas Gonzalez. Lionel Messi with four goals and four assists leads both the table of the competition deeming him to be a player of the contest. At the back, German Pezzella continues to partner Nicolas Otamendi in a solid center-back pairing.
Colombia will bring back Miguel Borja in the starting lineup in the hunt for goals as neither Duvan Zapata nor Luis Muriel has found their scoring boot in the contest. The Atalanta pair's deadly form at the club level didn't transcend onto the international level. Muriel has been particularly disappointing even after enjoying the best goal-scoring season of his career. Other than that, the team that claimed victory against Uruguay on penalties retained their place.
Argentina vs Colombia Predicted Lineups :
Argentina: Emiliano Martinez; Nahuel Molina, German Pezzella, Nicolas Otamendi, Marcos Acuna, Leonardo Paredes, Rodrigo De Paul, Giovanni Lo Celso, Lionel Messi, Lautaro Martinez, Alejandro Gomez
Colombia: David Ospina; Daniel Munoz, Yeri Mina, Davinson Sanchez, William Tesillo, Juan Cuadrado, Wilmar Barrios, Gustavo Cuellar, Luis Diaz, Duvan Zapata, Miguel Borja
Argentina vs Colombia Head to Head :
Argentina and Colombia have met 40 times in total with La Albiceleste prevailing in 23 games and losing only nine. The other eight games have ended in a draw. Colombia however has taken results out of Argentina in the last three games including a 2-0 loss in their last meeting in the Copa America in 2019. Roger Martinez and Duvan Zapata, in the present squad, scored the goals in the group stage victory.
ARG vs COL Dream11 Team Prediction :
GK: Emiliano Martinez (Arg)
DEF: William Tesillo, German Pezzella, Yeri Mina, Marcos Acuna
MID: Rodrigo De Paul, Wilmar Barrios, Giovanni Lo Celso
FW: Lionel Messi, Alejandro Gomez, Duvan Zapata
Match Prediction: Argentina 2-0 Colombia
Argentina's abundance in attacking talent joined with a rigid defense shaped a winning run for them since a 1-1 draw with Chile in the opening group stage game last month. With Messi having one of the tournaments of his life it is hard to predict any other result than an Argentina victory and a place in the showpiece final. Colombia did overcome Uruguay's challenge but it was down to penalties. They failed to score in the game and haven't scored more than one goal throughout the competition. Also, their leaky defense will cause their elimination against such a free-scoring opposition.
