Colombia shocked the world last fall when it won three qualifiers and put itself back to the top of the CONMEBOL table. The Colombians are such a good position that a loss against Bolivia on Friday would not hurt their standing too much. However the team will look to continue its incredible run and attempt to catch Argentina for the top spot in the confederation.
Heading into the Sept. 7 match against Uruguay, Colombia was out of the top five spots in the confederation and looked unlikely to make it through to the World Cup. On that afternoon, Los Cafeteros ran away with a 4-0 victory fueled by goals from superstar Radamel Falcao, Teofilio Gutiérrez, and Juan Camilo Zúñiga. They followed that with a 3-1 drubbing of Chile in Santiago with tallies coming from James Rodríguez, Falcao, and Gutiérrez. The 2-0 win over Paraguay a month later cemented Colombia's dominance in South America. The trio of Falcao, Gutiérrez, and Rodríguez will be expected to continue carrying the load and lead the team to victory, but they have proven more than capable up to this point.
"We haven't achieved anything yet, but we have won three vital games that have put us in among the direct qualification places," Guterriez said about the team's run of three wins. "[Bolivia and Venezuela] are going to be very tough opponents but I think we can take all six points."
Meanwhile Bolivia has earned four points in its last two games and is just four points out of the fourth and fifth spot. Their latest 4-1 victory over Uruguay certainly inspires confidence in this team's chances of making a run, but they will need to defeat Colombia to sustain their hopes.
Prediction: Colombia must be wary of Bolivia, but they should have an advantage with the heat
Start Time: 4 PM EST
TV: beIN Sport USA
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