Colombia have extended their unbeaten run and reached the Copa America final for the first time since 2001. Against Uruguay, James & Co. were not felled by an early sending-off
Winning the group with three wins and 9:1 goals, eliminating Brazil in the quarter-finals – but Uruguay cut their teeth on Colombia: Coach Marcelo Bielsa’s team lost 1-0 in the semi-finals of the Copa America on Thursday night (CEST), despite being outnumbered for a half. The Colombians will now face defending champions Argentina in the final on Monday (2 a.m. CEST). After the final whistle, there were unpleasant scenes in the stands.
In hot Charlotte, Crystal Palace midfielder Jefferson Lerma scored the winner in the 39th minute, heading in a corner from James at the second post. It was the sixth assist at this Copa for the forward, who is now 32 years old but is performing in the USA as if it were still 2014, a feat last achieved by Pelé for Brazil in 1970.
The fact that he was substituted prematurely in the 62nd minute also had to do with the fact that he was in danger of a yellow card. But he was not alone in this. In a hard-fought game, Rodrigo Bentancur had to leave the pitch early for Uruguay (34′), while Colombia had to play the second half with ten players: Daniel Munoz was shown a yellow card in stoppage time of the first half for an elbow strike during a stoppage in play, even though a straight red would have been more appropriate.
Joker Suarez misses the post – Will Argentina become the sole record winners?
Uruguay had already missed several chances before the break, particularly in the person of Darwin, and the ball just wouldn’t go in the net even when they were outnumbered. Substitute Luis Suarez missed the best chance in his 141st international match when he missed at the far right post from a central position (71′).
For their part, the Colombians missed several top chances in the final minutes, but in the end they still celebrated their first final appearance since 2001, when they won their only Copa title at home. Opponents Argentina could win their 16th and thus become the sole record winners ahead of Uruguay, but they should be warned. Colombia are unbeaten in 28 games and were last cracked in February 2022 – by Argentina.
