Colombia defeats Uruguay and qualifies for the Copa América final

To decide who will qualify for the Copa América grand final, Uruguay and Colombia faced each other this Wednesday (10) at the Bank of America Stadium, in Charlotte, United States.

In a disputed and very lively game, the Colombian team beat Uruguay by the minimum score and will face Argentina in the grand final of the competition.

How was the confrontation?

The match was fast-paced, with both teams marking each other well, which made it difficult for the attacking players to define themselves in good conditions. Darwin Núñez was the Uruguayan player who most troubled the Colombian defense, almost opening the scoring on three occasions.

In the 38th minute, James Rodríguez took a corner kick, and Lerma, number 16, headed firmly, putting Colombia ahead on the scoreboard.

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_{Jefferson Lerma celebrates the first goal of the match – Uruguay 0-1 Colombia (Reproduction/Gettyimages Embed)}

The Colombians went forward to extend their lead, but saw the situation get complicated when confusion broke out on the field. Ugarte grabbed Muñoz, who retaliated with an elbow.

As Muñoz was already on a yellow card, the referee issued a second card, resulting in the right-back being sent off.

Second time

With an extra player, Uruguay tried to impose their game, however, Colombia had their marking well fitted in and occupied the spaces on the field well.

After receiving a good ball from Ugarte, in the 25th minute Luis Suárez tried to equalize by finishing inside the area, the ball capriciously hit the post and went out.

Aware of the need for a goal, La Celeste went forward pressing for possession, with Valverde wasting yet another good opportunity by finishing off target.

The game had a defense versus attack characteristic, Arascaeta and Soares, orchestrated the Uruguayan team in search of a draw, coming up against the Colombian bolt.

Colombia had the chance to score a goal that would give them peace of mind twice when Uribe was one-on-one with Rochet, the first time going wide and the second hitting the post.

The match continued with Uruguay trying to equalize until the last minute, but Colombia bravely held on to the result with one less player and qualified for the final.

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_{Players celebrate qualifying (Reproduction/Gettyimages Embed)}

Final

The final of the tournament between Argentina and Colombia will take place next Sunday at 9pm (Brasília time) at the Hard Rock Stadium in Florida. Argentina has 15 titles in the competition, while its opponent Colombia won its only title in 2001, since then the team has not reached the final of the tournament.

Featured photo: Players celebrate goal. Reproduction Gettyimages Embed.