Uruguay and Colombia impacted in the South American classification

Venezuela 1-1 Argentina

This was a tricky encounter for the World Cup champions in the end. Not only were they missing their star goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, but their hosts Venezuela were buoyed by promising form and atrocious playing conditions.

As for the ‘vino tinto’, a waterlogged pitch leveled the playing field overnight and the likes of Lionel Messi and co struggled to get into any kind of rhythm.

This result means that Venezuela now have 11 points from the first half of their campaign and are in seventh play-off position, while Argentina remain at the top of the table, three points clear of Colombia, second place.

Bolivia 1-0 Colombia

El Alto has another victim. Second place Colombia joins the list of teams that have failed to conquer the vertiginous heights of this Bolivian city. Despite receiving a red card in the first half, the home side had enough to get over the line and seal a third consecutive qualification win, a feat Bolivia have not done since 1993.

For Colombia, it was a tough defeat in difficult conditions and, as said, it is normal for excellent teams to be found in Bolivia. They literally didn’t have enough oxygen in the tank, but they return to more familiar conditions in Barranquilla for their next game with their birth at the 2026 World Cup still very much in tact.

Chile 1-2 Brazil

This battle of teams in terrible form saw quality reign and five-time World Cup winners Brazil picked up three vital points after what has been a tumultuous first half of the campaign. Domestic talents Luis Henrique and Igor Jesus, both from Botafogo, scored goals in a late comeback win that helped Brazil avoid total panic.

It’s still unconvincing, and with a goal down after just two minutes, Brazil are still set for qualification, but unless they can sort out the balance of their squad and figure out who their Best XI really consists of, they won’t nothing will be considered. as favorites for the tournament which is now less than two years away. For Chile, the bad streak continues and they are at the bottom of the table with five points.

Ecuador 0-0 Paraguay

As mentioned, both teams are in a decent qualifying league position and would have been seen as direct contenders for a place at the 2026 World Cup before this match kicked off. With that in mind, it’s not a huge surprise that they both settled for a point rather than take this match by the scruff of the neck and risk a painful loss against a contender.

Although Ecuador dominated the game, they only forced the Paraguayan goalkeeper into five saves, and all of those shots came from distance.

Peru 1-0 Uruguay

A spirited performance from hosts Peru was the biggest shock of this round. They defeated Uruguay 1-0 in Lima to get the first win of their entire qualifying campaign. Peru’s first win and third goal in nine games has also lifted them off the bottom of the table as they move ahead of Chile into ninth.

Miguel Araujo’s header means Uruguay are now three without a win or a goal. With that, what looked like safe qualification for Uruguay is now not so safe, with just four points separating them from the non-automatic qualification spot below.