The second match of the round of 16, was also a match between two Latin American teams, Uruguay & Colombia. Both known for tough Latin American brand of football. For Uruguay, as expected Forlan came in place of the banned Suarez & along with Cavani lead the attack. The team looked motivated & keen to perform. On the other hand, Columbia, chasing their first possible entry into quarterfinals, looked sharp & committed from the beginning. They controlled the ball better & had the better of exchanges. As a plan, they were targeting the Uruguayan goal with long rangers. The match was evenly contested, till about the 28th minute, when James Rodriguez chested the ball on the top of the box, half turned & volleyed the ball into the net past the bewildered Uruguayan goalkeeper Muslera & the whole defense.....it was a majestic goal...arguably the best till now in the tournament, even ahead of van Persie's header against Spain. Rodriguez, with his fourth goal, joined Messi, Neymar & Mueller as the top scorer in the tournament till now. Columbia up 1-0. Cavani, Forlan, Arevalo tried hard to equalise, but Colombians held on to the slender lead, as the ref blew the half time whistle.
Second half also started with both teams going for the kill, but yet again, Colombians were more determined. Once again, from an orchestrated wall pass, Juan Cuadrado pulled the Uruguayan defense towards him & then headed back to incoming Rodriguez who simply slammed in from inside the box....it was his fifth goal of the tournament, making him the top scorer till date. It was 2-0 & celebration time for the Colombians. Mario Yepes, the skipper has led the team very well from the back, as Los Cafetoros blanked out La Celeste. They had been fantastic in the Group stages & now they upped the ante against their more fancied rivals to move into the quarter finals for the first time ever...history being created for them.
Uruguayan coach Tabarez looked crest fallen, as did most of the players. They had played hard, but lacked imagination.... the Suarez ban had finally come to haunt them....Forlan was a forlorn shadow of his 2010 self, Cavani was left alone upfront & Godin & Co had no answers to the Colombian onslaught, led by baby faced Jams Rodriguez, arguably the star of this tournament. he has been simply sensational till now.
They now meet Brazil in what could be a mouth watering contest. They now have the belief that they can be a serious contender of the title & their forward line should give Brazilian coach Scolari sleepless nights on scripting strategies. Brazil will wilt under this Colombian attack unless they find ways to plug their defensive gaps.
Second half also started with both teams going for the kill, but yet again, Colombians were more determined. Once again, from an orchestrated wall pass, Juan Cuadrado pulled the Uruguayan defense towards him & then headed back to incoming Rodriguez who simply slammed in from inside the box....it was his fifth goal of the tournament, making him the top scorer till date. It was 2-0 & celebration time for the Colombians. Mario Yepes, the skipper has led the team very well from the back, as Los Cafetoros blanked out La Celeste. They had been fantastic in the Group stages & now they upped the ante against their more fancied rivals to move into the quarter finals for the first time ever...history being created for them.
Uruguayan coach Tabarez looked crest fallen, as did most of the players. They had played hard, but lacked imagination.... the Suarez ban had finally come to haunt them....Forlan was a forlorn shadow of his 2010 self, Cavani was left alone upfront & Godin & Co had no answers to the Colombian onslaught, led by baby faced Jams Rodriguez, arguably the star of this tournament. he has been simply sensational till now.
They now meet Brazil in what could be a mouth watering contest. They now have the belief that they can be a serious contender of the title & their forward line should give Brazilian coach Scolari sleepless nights on scripting strategies. Brazil will wilt under this Colombian attack unless they find ways to plug their defensive gaps.
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