Chile and Japan will complete the first round of group stage matches when they come up against each other in Sao Paulo.
Chile are the reigning Copa America champions and have won the last two tournaments with dramatic penalty shoot-out wins over Argentina.
Japan are appearing at their second Copa America and are considered by many to be one of the strongest guest nations for some time.
They were invited to compete in the 1999 edition of the tournament but didn’t really compete at all. They struggled and finished bottom of their group with just a single point to their name.
Japan have a much better record against South American teams in recent years. They have beaten both Paraguay and Bolivia in friendly matches and most notably beat Colombia at the 2018 World Cup.
Form doesn’t favor Chile coming into the tournament. Since their success in 2016, they experienced a dismal World Cup qualification campaign and failed to make it to the tournament in Russia.
They then played ten friendly international matches in 2018, claiming just four victories along the way. They will need to be at their best against Japan if they are to begin their campaign with a win.
Many of Chile’s players seem to be past their best. Alexis Sanchez has been the hero in previous tournaments but has looked like a shadow of his former self in recent times.
Arturo Vidal and Gary Medel have also been key to Chile’s recent Copa America triumphs but are now in the twilight of their careers.
Guest nations are generally not expected to cause too much of a stir at the Copa America. Mexico have reached a couple of finals but very rarely do the guests make it past the quarter-final stage.
Japan will be looking to buck the trend this year and will need to get off to a strong start against Chile if they are to progress in this year’s tournament.
Their star players include Gaku Shibasaki who plays for Spanish club Getafe and Hamburger’s Tatsuya Ito. Shinji Okazaki has over 100 caps for Japan and is seen as their main source for goals.
These two teams are relatively evenly matched. Chile may have the upper hand with the match being played on South American soil, but Japan will be looking to upset the party.
Forebet predicts a close encounter which will most likely end in a low scoring draw.