Colombia and Paraguay play their final group match in Salvador on Sunday as Paraguay look to book their spot in the last eight.
Colombia have already qualified for the quarter-finals with two wins from their opening two matches and are yet to concede a goal at the tournament.
Their 2-0 win against Argentina was followed up by a 1-0 victory over Qatar in their last match. This is enough to see them top Group B, regardless of the result on Sunday.
Así fuel gol de Duván Zapata para el 1-0 ante @QFA_EN pic.twitter.com/NTiRbXjJAH— Selección Colombia (@FCFSeleccionCol) June 19, 2019
Así fuel gol de Duván Zapata para el 1-0 ante @QFA_EN pic.twitter.com/NTiRbXjJAH
Colombia completely dominated Qatar but it took them until the 86th minute to finally break the deadlock. Duvan Zapata headed in a James Rodriguez cross to ensure back-to-back victories for his side.
The Atalanta striker now has two tournament goals to his name and is level with Chile’s Eduardo Vargas and Brazil’s Philippe Coutinho at the top of the goal scoring charts.
Colombia had 68% ball possession and remarkably only scored once despite 19 attempts on the Qatar goal.
After drawing with Qatar in their opening match, Paraguay picked up another point against Argentina; putting qualification for the knock out stage in their hands.
23-year-old Richard Sanchez gave Paraguay the lead in the first half but Lionel Messi pegged them back with a penalty after the break.
Paraguay had a penalty of their own moments later but Derlis Gonzalez failed to make Argentina pay and his spot kick was saved by Franco Armani.
They had more attempts on goal than Argentina and will be feeling that they should have come away from the match with all three points.
Miguel Almiron was Paraguay’s star player in their last game and provided the assist for Sanchez’s goal, following a dazzling run down the wing.
The 25-year-old became Newcastle United’s record singing last season and is proving his worth with some eye-catching performances in Brazil.
Colombia and Paraguay have faced each other 46 times over the years and there hasn’t been much to separate the two sides. Colombia have 21 victories to Paraguay’s 19 and it’s likely to be a close encounter this time around.
With Colombia already through to the last eight, the onus will be Paraguay to take the game to Colombia and join them in the quarter-finals.
However, with world-class stars such as Juan Cuadrado, James Rodriguez and Radamel Falcao in their ranks, Colombia should win and maintain their 100% record at this year’s Copa America.