Both South American football powers will miss qualifying matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup without their biggest stars, with Lionel Messi missing Argentina's 2-1 defeat to Colombia and Neymar missing when Brazil lost to Paraguay.
James Rodriguez scored a penalty and an assist to help Colombia beat world champions Argentina 2-1 in Barranquilla, while Diego Gomez scored the winner for Paraguay in a 1-0 win over Brazil in Assuncao, in the third round.
Both Argentina and Brazil are struggling with injured stars, with Messi and Neymar's replacements unable to secure away wins twice more.
Great results in South America… 🍿#FIFA_World_Cup | #Weare26
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) September 11, 2024
Colombia 2-1 Argentina
It was a win in twelve matches for Colombia, who lost 1-0 to Argentina in a bitterly disappointing defeat in the Copa America final, where the 2022 World Cup winner will also win the continental trophy in Miami, in July. The Colombians appear to have this match in mind, and perhaps they will find a way to beat Argentina for the first time since 2019.
Yerson Mosquera opened the scoring for Colombia with a quick header in the 25th minute, but Argentina equalised in the 48th minute after Nico Gonzalez intercepted Rodriguez's pass. Rodriguez made amends 15 minutes later for his penalty awarded after a video review to secure victory at the Metropolitan Stadium.
“It's a great victory against an Argentine team that has won everything,” Rodriguez said. “The rhythm was tough, it was very hot, but let's play an excellent game. It's a fair victory.”
Argentine coach Lionel Scaloni said the heat had an impact on the match.
“The temperature was the same for both, but obviously there were not good conditions to watch the show,” the coach said.
Paraguay 1-0 Brazil
Gomez Marco blocks Paraguay at the entrance to the penalty area and shoots, but the ball deflects towards goalkeeper Alisson. Brazil have few chances to draw level with last year's coach Dorival Junior, who has suffered his first defeat since taking charge in January.
The Brazilian coach, who is generally reserved in front of the media, said in a group interview in the second match that his team would qualify for the next World Cup final. Paraguay's defeat suggests they are still far from fulfilling that promise.
His idea of starting against a defensively strong Paraguayan side, with Real Madrid's attacking trio of Vinicius Junior, Endrick and Rodrygo, clearly failed. Or Mia Lucas Moura said “the game is over” so we'll open and close the house in 20 minutes.
“They'll never see us defend, even after they score,” Mora said, or heeded.
Defender Marquinhos said the Brazilian squad has not enjoyed “constant confidence” recently.
“We are trying to find a better way to play,” he added. “There are a lot of parts that are being changed.”
CONMEBOL qualifiers balanced
In other CONMEBOL qualifying rounds, in the third round, Bolivia defeated Chile 2-1 in Santiago, Ecuador beat Peru 1-0 and Venezuela drew 0-0 with Uruguay.
Argentina leads the tournament with 18 points after each match, two points ahead of Colombia. Uruguay is third with 15 points, followed by Ecuador with 14 points, while Brazil dropped to fifth place with 10 points.
Despite the defeat, Argentina is still on track for the 2026 World Cup, which will be hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
As an expanded 48-team tournament, the top six teams ranked in the South American qualifying rounds will win a place in the final.
The seventh place in the qualifying rounds goes to a play-off match between the federations, with the last three places eliminated.
