By NESTOR F. SEBASTIAN
Just when the dust has settled on one of the more memorable rounds in South American World Cup qualifying, up come another round of matches that will surely have fans in euphoria or depression at the end of Wednesday night.
A wounded Argentina, a reignited Colombia, a desperate Ecuador, a shocked Uruguay and a nervous Venezuela are battling for the final two spots in CONMEBOL's qualifying table with Brazil already qualified and Paraguay and Chile all but assured of a spot in South Africa next year.
Argentina (22 pts) sits in the coveted fourth-placed spot but has Colombia and Ecuador (both at 20 pts) as well as Venezuela and Uruguay (both at 18 pts) hot on its trail. In the end, it looks like four teams will duke it out for that final playoff spot against a CONCACAF rival in November's playoff series.
Here's a brief preview of Wednesday's 16th round of matches:
BOLIVIA v. ECUADOR, 3pm ET
An almost-eliminated Bolivia host an Ecuadorean side who are vying for their third straight World Cup appearance but only have themselves to blame for some early hiccups to their initial matches in the campaign. But, if anyone can sneak off with a win in the heavens of La Paz, it's Ecuador, whose players are accustomed to the rigors of high altitude. A win for Ecuador, coupled with an Argentina loss, could put them in fourth place.
URUGUAY v. COLOMBIA, 5pm ET
Uruguay has qualified for the World Cup once in the past four tournaments. On Saturday, they controlled their own destiny and failed when they fell to bottom-feeders Peru 1-0 in Lima, mostly on missed chances, overconfidence and eventual frustration and panic. The Charruas now host a resurgent Colombian side in what should be an epic contest to fans except maybe for many Uruguayan fans themselves whose fading support has led the Uruguayan federation to implement a two-for-one ticket deal in order to pack the famed Centenario.
PARAGUAY v. ARGENTINA, 7pm ET
Most of the world already saw the Albicelestes' 3-1 home loss to rivals Brazil and most of the world will keep tabs on their fate Wednesday when they travel to Paraguay, whose own recent lackluster results have luckily been offset by a strong start to its qualifying campaign. One of the last few matches that Maradona played prior to USA '94 was a playoff series against Australia which they won 2-1. Is another playoff looming for Maradona? Or will he get the axe before then should Argentina suffer another loss?
BRAZIL v. CHILE, 9pm ET
Sure, the Brazilians are in but manager Dunga wants to keep his boys' feet on the ground, especially against one of the hottest teams in the region, a Chile squad managed by none other than the Argentine master, Marcelo 'El Loco' Bielsa. Will a matter of national pride weigh on Bielsa's mind, following Brazil's win in his homeland? For Brazil, taking six points from the likes of Argentina and Chile would only solidify their power further entering the final two rounds of qualifying.
VENEZUELA v. PERU, 9pm ET
The Vinotinto are threatening more and more every cycle. They've never qualified for the World Cup on a senior level but have improved dramatically and the fact that they're still in contention with three rounds left is a sign of the times in South American soccer. Venezuela took a valuable point in Santiago on Saturday in what was supposed to be Chile's official qualification victory party. The Vinotinto are much alive although their last two matches are against Paraguay and Brazil.
What do you think of South American qualifying? Will Argentina fail to make the World Cup? Who has the tenacity to grab that final playoff spot?
Share your thoughts below.
