The Arena Corinthians will host Colombia and Chile in the third 2019 Copa America quarter-final on Saturday.
Colombia are the only team to have a 100% record so far at the tournament after they won all three of their group matches.
Chile began their campaign with two victories but a dramatic loss to Uruguay in their final group game saw them finish one point behind La Celeste in Group C.
Chile got the defense of their title off to a flier with a 4-0 thrashing of Japan in their opening match. Erick Pulgar and Alexis Sanchez scored either side of half time and Eduardo Vargas grabbed a brace.
👋 Adiós, Rio de Janeiro🙌 Hola, Sao Paulo🇨🇱 #LaRoja ya se instaló en la ciudad donde enfrentará este viernes a Colombia#CopaAmerica #VamosChile pic.twitter.com/gIxfYXbFK8— Selección Chilena (@LaRoja) June 25, 2019
👋 Adiós, Rio de Janeiro🙌 Hola, Sao Paulo🇨🇱 #LaRoja ya se instaló en la ciudad donde enfrentará este viernes a Colombia#CopaAmerica #VamosChile pic.twitter.com/gIxfYXbFK8
The holders then followed up their opening win with a 2-1 victory over Ecuador. Alexis Sanchez again found the net; scoring the winner in the 51st minute.
Chile dominated the possession against Uruguay in their last match and also recorded more shots however Edinson Cavani’s late strike condemned Chile to their first loss of the tournament.
Colombia opened their account with an impressive 2-0 win over Argentina. Roger Martinez opened the scoring in the 71st minute before Duvan Zapata came off the bench to seal the victory.
They then registered consecutive 1-0 wins against Qatar and Paraguay to claim top spot in Group B. Carlos Queiroz’s men were dominant in both matches and the score lines do not reflect their superiority.
Remarkably, Chile are going for a third successive Copa America title. Colombia’s only triumph came back in 2001 as they hosted the tournament.
With pre-tournament favorites Brazil and Argentina both struggling to find any sort of rhythm, Colombia and Chile will see this is as a great opportunity to make a run at the title.
Chile boss Reinaldo Rueda’s Colombian heritage is an interesting aspect of this tie. He has previously coached Colombia and four clubs in his home nation which could give him an advantage when considering his tactics.
As for their head to head record, Chile have the upper hand with 15 wins to Colombia’s 10. Their last meeting ended in a 0-0 draw in a World Cup qualifier in 2016.
This game can’t end in a draw and the possibility of extra-time is likely with both sides fairly evenly matched.
Forebet predicts a tense match with a place in the semi-finals at stake. A low scoring draw is likely and we could see it go all the way penalties.