Neither penicillin nor ibuprofen, the perfect remedy for the soul is winr. And this selection by Néstor Lorenzo cures, restores. They beat Iraq 1-0 in their seventh outing. Great match…? No, it was like dancing with one’s sister. Stellar function of Colombia…? Not at all, correct and thank you. Brilliant individuals…? None. Thus, without liking or disappointing, without criticism or praise, Lorenzo’s Colombia completes 7 games with five wins and two draws. In numbers, he falls in love. The fans are not delirious with happiness, but they sleep like chickens.
What can we write down to his credit…? The dynamics, the energy in recovering the ball, the generosity in the delivery, the order. He approves the main item of football modernity: intensity. has it. There is a lack of brilliance, the one that gives harmony when a team has time to work, or when they know how to play and advance as a group, or the luminosity provided by the hierarchical figures. Example, a Luis Díaz, who is in a different category from the rest, but Lucho did not shine and was replaced. He just one of his trademark dribblings in the first half. Then, they waited for him staggered and he did not unbalance. It can be said that it is a selection that tries to be efficient and, to a large extent, it succeeds. Otherwise, it would not go undefeated. Now, are you excited…? Hard to answer. In any case, it’s up to everyone’s taste.
(Also read: Millionaires vs. Nacional: the most anticipated final in the history of the League)
And in the should…? First let’s place the rival. Iraq is a modest selection, one of the least evolved. It ranks 67th in the FIFA World Ranking (Colombia is 17th), seventh in Asia, attended a World Cup once, in Mexico ’86, and lost all three of its games. It has almost no players in Europe; there are six who perform in Sweden because in truth they are Swedes of Iraqi parents. A low-level football expression. Iraq, surely, is less than the nine South American teams that Colombia will have to face in the Qualifiers. It is not the best measure. But you have to play with someone, and it’s not easy to find strong rivals now that Europe is eminently focused on its League of Nations or qualifying for the Eurocup. Luckily an agreement was reached with Germany for Tuesday.
Colombia was clearly superior in the game, they had 68% possession. And here comes the deficit: he finished off only once on goal in 96 minutes. Against Iraq… It was the goal. Above, authorship of Mateo Cassierra, a player who does not exactly ignite crowds.
Beyond the fact that the team had no creativity to break the last Iraqi line (buckled), the Colombian soccer player is not very fond of goals, it is difficult for him, he kicks little on goal. It is not that he exceeds the maneuver, on the contrary, he lacks a penultimate maneuver, the one that generates the imbalance and induces the defining shot. They are rarely in goal position because they have not previously removed the brush. There is also a lack of leaders. One at least. Luis Díaz is a tremendous crack, not a leader, Cuadrado wants to be, but he doesn’t give it to him. And another is not noticed. A team needs a uniting personality that leads the pack.
(In addition: Millonarios vs. Nacional: dates and times of the great final of the League)
“We are world champions in friendlies,” says Andrés Magri, director of the Bogotá magazine Fútbol Total. But you have to take advantage of these FIFA dates. And winning is essential to keep spirits and confidence high, the good atmosphere in the locker room, to avoid criticism that immediately generates crises.
The panorama for other technicians facing the tie
Let’s not rush to diagnose. “Here Lorenzo did a great job with Melgar, his team played really well”, advises Ricardo Montoya, a Peruvian television commentator. Let’s wait for September, when the truth of the points begins. Let’s be patient like Brazil, which apparently will wait for Ancelotti until July next year, when his relationship with Real Madrid ends, to hire him. The CBF does not want another. Brazil, the only team that has not appointed a coach yet, is obsessed with Carlo Ancelotti. Will the Verdeamarilla face the Qualifiers and the next Copa América in the United States without a fixed coach…? The bomb was thrown by André Rizek, a journalist for Rede Globo. It would be, at least, strange to see the Brazilian National Team undertake tournaments with a temporary driver, but it seems that way, since three months after the start of the 2026 qualifying round, there are no efforts to hire a permanent one.
Because…? Let’s see… In Uruguay the common fan didn’t want a Uruguayan strategist for La Celeste for anything in the world. “Enough with the Uruguayans, they are very defensive, they all get behind and Uruguay has players to try something else”, they say in the forums. That’s why they went for Bielsa. In Brazil, the problem is different: the country that almost always has the best soccer players in the world does not generate high-level coaches. There is none, that is why the years go by and in general the same names are mentioned: Abel Braga, Vanderley Luxemburgo, Mano Menezes, Luiz Felipe Scolari, Fernando Diniz, Muricy Ramalho, Oswaldo de Oliveira… They want a profound change and they look to Europe. Eder Militão, Vinicius and Rodrygo, the Brazilians from Real Madrid, fervently recommended their coach Ancelotti. Some more, who have had it in other clubs, such as Thiago Silva (at PSG) supported the idea, and the president of the CBF, Ednaldo Rodrigues, took the suggestion to the letter. He has no other name. It so happens that Ancelotti has a contract with Madrid until June 30 of next year and he has said that he will remain there.
(In other news: Does Alberto Gamero remove his hair if Millionaires is champion? This responded)
Brazil continues hand in hand with Ramón Menezes, in charge of the Under-20 and the main team until Ancelotti or someone else is appointed. Will we see a Brazil on automatic pilot for two years…? Strange…
Uruguay is immersed in a euphoric cloud. He has just been crowned U-20 world champion, which augurs new figures in the near future, and to this is added the excitement of having Marcelo Bielsa, a coach who revolutionizes every medium where he goes. “My style is to attack”, says the header phrase of Bielsa and the excited sky-blue fans. After a century of conservative football, Bielsa promises to sweep them by air, sea and land in the Qualifiers. He put together a totally new team, without Suárez or Cavani or Godín or other historic ones. In his debut he thrashed Nicaragua 4-1, although Nicaragua is ranked 140 in the Ranking. It is much less than Iraq. But the people left the Centenario happy, they saw an aggressive, offensive team, with rapid transit through the middle, with players convinced of the coach’s idea.
“The memories of the World Cup are indelible, but we have to carry on,” said Lionel Scaloni from China with his proverbial serenity and common sense. Argentina defeated Australia in Beijing, an increasingly rising team. They qualified for the last five World Cups for a reason. And he comes from making a more than satisfactory Cup in Qatar 2022. Messi gave an exhibition, 60,000 Chinese fans went with his shirt and, when asked if he will play in 2026, he was clear: “I don’t want to go that far in time. Due to age It is difficult for him to play in the next World Cup. Now there are the Qualifiers and the Copa América”. Perhaps the World Cup in the United States will still surprise him at Inter Miami and, by being there, he will be encouraged. The novelty of Argentina was the debut of Alejandro Garnacho with the albiceleste. Even at 18, the striker is Manchester United’s best hope. He is all ambition, speed, strength, one against one. He could play for Spain, since he was born in Madrid, but he chose his motherland. Could it be a super crack…? We will see…
last tango…
Jorge Barraza
For the time
@JorgeBarrazaOK
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