Colombia take on Uruguay in the other all-South America affair of the Round of 16 of the 2014 FIFA World Cup on the same day that Brazil and Chile battle it out for a place in the quarter finals. What would have been a face-off between two of the best strikers in the world will now be more about the team that can cope better without their talisman. Colombia have managed to make the absence of Falcao seem like an afterthought with nine goals scored in three matches. How Uruguay fare without Luis Suarez who was banned for four months by FIFA on Thursday however, remains to be seen.
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Colombia qualified with a perfect record from Group C, winning all three group matches while playing stylish, attacking football. Alongside the Netherlands, Los Cafeteros are the only team to finish the group stages with all nine points and also matched the Dutch’s goal difference of +7. Despite resting some of his starters in the final group game against Japan, Jose Peckerman’s team walloped the Asian 4-1 with Jackson Martinez making a case for a place in the starting XI with two goals. AS Monaco youngster James Rodriguez also notched his third goal of the campaign in a second half cameo. With the attackers in such blistering form, it is hard to see this Colombia side not scoring goals, especially against Uruguay’s suspect defending. While Colombia’s defense is not the best around either, they have forwards that can outscore almost any opposition in the world right now.
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For Uruguay, they will be without star striker Luis Suarez who has been banned for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini. Suarez, who has a history of biting the opposition, was hit with a four-month ban by FIFA on Thursday and is not even allowed to enter the stadium to watch the team play on Saturday. After missing the 3-1 defeat to Costa Rica in their opening match, Suarez marked his comeback with a match-winning brace against England. The team finally qualified when a Diego Godin header secured a 1-0 win against Italy, but only after Suarez had bit his victim on the shoulder.
TEAM NEWS
Jose Peckerman has so many viable attacking options that 2-goal hero against Japan Jackson Martinez is likely to find himself back on the bench, with Teofilo Gutierrez taking back his place in the starting XI. Rising star James Rodriguez and Juan Cuadrado will support Gutierrez in attack and Peckerman will hope they can continue their good form to progress into the quarter finals.
For Uruguay, PSG striker Edison Cavani and veteran Diego Forlan will partner in attack in the absence of Luis Suarez while the rest of the team is expected to remain unchanged.
Probable Lineups
Colombia (4-2-3-1): Ospina; Armero, Zapata, Yepes, Zuniga; Aguilar, Sanchez; Cuadrado, Rodriguez, Ibarbo; Gutierrez
Uruguay (4-4-2): Muslera; Pereira, Godin, Giminez, Caceras; Dios, Rodriguez, Perez, Lodeiro, Cavani, Forlan
PREDICTION
Simply put, Uruguay are toothless without Luis Suarez (no pun intended) and I fully expect the impressive Colombian attack to blow them away.
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