Colombia went from more to less in its sparring role for Saudi Arabia, in Murcia (Spain), in a match that, according to statistics, will be recorded as a victory. This Sunday’s 1-0 must be taken for what it is: 90 minutes of testing for a group that is just beginning to find its space.
Colombia’s experimental team, starting with its coaching staff, had some high points. One, Rafael Santos Borré, who confirmed that his good season at Eintracht Frankfurt, with the Europa League title included, was no coincidence.
One of the criticisms of Reinaldo Rueda had been the way he used the strikers, in many cases moving them away from his zone of influence. In the case of Borré, he came to play almost as a recovery midfielder to perform tactical tasks and that left him very, very far from the goal.
Cárdenas, who made him debut at Deportivo Cali, did the easy thing: shoot him from ‘9’. And Borré responded with a goal, quick, at 9 minuteswith a touch in the center of the area in a very fast play, with the participation of Jhon Arias and Eduard Atuesta.
Precisely, Atuesta was another of the high points of this Selection. The player from Palmeiras has gained a lot of order with respect to the willful man who was in the 2020 Pre-Olympic with Arturo Reyes. He plays in the center and he does it well, and he also contributes on the wing.
One of the two World Cup players summoned by Cárdenas, Éder Álvarez Balanta, stood out playing as a central midfielder, a very different position from the one José Pékerman put him at the time. And José Luis Chunga also fulfilled, who looked solid and showed that with continuity he can be one of the options for the National Team.
Not much can be said about the team’s operation, with the exception that this complete list was made public just a couple of days ago. It was even surprising that a line that has already worked together, the defense made up of Muñoz, Lucumí (in the second half), Sánchez and Yairo Moreno, has made some mistakes due to lack of concentration.
Cárdenas tried some variants, such as moving Daniel Muñoz from winger to midfielder, a position in which he already played during Osorio’s time at Nacional. But in general there was no time to invent.
In attack, the team went from more to less. From arriving very clearly in the first half, with overflow and speed, it cost him a lot in the second stage, partly due to the defensive adjustments of the Arabs, and partly due to the lack of precision. He only created one scoring option in the second half, which Óscar Estupiñán, who had come on for Álvarez Balanta, shot into the body of goalkeeper Mohammed Al Owais.
What Borré suffered at the time, playing away from the area, this time happened to Luis Javier Suárez, who did not feel comfortable as a winger. It was the first change: in his place came “Cucho” Hernández, who seemed happy, but he no longer had as many spaces.
It was an experimental game and that’s how it should be taken, so that Amaranto Perea, the assistant to the new coach, Néstor Lorenzo, takes notes of what he can find to start his work, after July, when his relationship with Melgar de Arequipa ends. Borré, the one who was most looking forward to this opportunity, replied.
Jose Orlando Ascencio
Sports Sub-Editor
@josasc
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