Source: Alamy Stock Photo

Brazilian Stars Overcome Colombia in the Final Moments

The Brazilian national team had to wait until the ninth minute of stoppage time in the second half to defeat their Colombian guests 2-1 at the “Mané Garrincha” stadium in Brasília, as part of the 13th round of South American qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Brazil took the lead with a penalty from Raphinha six minutes after the starting whistle, following a foul by Daniel Muñoz on Vinícius Júnior. Colombia equalized through Luis Díaz with a low shot after a pass from captain James Rodríguez (41).

Although the Colombian team was the more dangerous side in the second half against the five-time World Cup champions, Real Madrid striker Vinícius Júnior snatched the three points with a powerful shot from outside the box that hit the head of Jefferson Lerma, slightly deflecting off course to deceive goalkeeper Camilo Vargas (90+9).

Brazil’s coach, Dinizal Júnior, praised his team’s victory, stating, “It’s an extremely important win at this moment and in this situation, but more importantly, it’s the grind that is developing at every moment. It’s a feeling we all share.”

On the other hand, Colombia’s Argentine coach, Néstor Lorenzo, expressed regret over his team’s loss, saying, “We kept Brazil in their half. I think we deserved more once again, but that’s how things are.” He added, “I have many doubts about the refereeing decisions, and I won’t comment on them.” He continued, “We played a great match and came away with nothing. We conceded an early goal again.”

Brazil suffered a blow with the injury of Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker, who was forced to leave the pitch in the 78th minute after suffering a head concussion following a collision with Davinson Sánchez, which required the Colombian defender to be stretchered off the field.

Brazil now has 21 points in the joint group, ranking second, four points behind Argentina, which is facing a tough challenge without their star Lionel Messi, who is injured, against third-placed Uruguay (20 points) on Friday. Brazil is also one point ahead of Paraguay, which defeated their Chilean guests, who are at the bottom of the standings, 1-0.

Meanwhile, Colombia dropped to sixth place, with 19 points, three points ahead of seventh-place Bolivia, which suffered a defeat against Peru, who are second from the bottom, 1-3.

Fifth and Important Win for Paraguay

In Asunción, Paraguay achieved their fifth win in the qualifiers, defeating Chile with a goal from defender Omar Alderete (60), strengthening their chances of reaching the World Cup finals.

This is Paraguay’s seventh consecutive match without a loss (4 wins and 3 draws) since Argentine coach Gustavo Alfaro took over the team.

Peruvian veteran striker Paolo Guerrero (41 years old) contributed a goal in his country’s 3-1 victory over Bolivia, lifting them off the bottom of the table, one point ahead of Chile (10 to 9).

Peru, who won their second match in the qualifiers, opened the scoring through Andy Polo (37), and Guerrero added a second (45), before Bolivia reduced the deficit with a goal from Miguel Terrazas from the penalty spot (58). Edison Flores restored the two-goal advantage for the hosts eight minutes before the final whistle (82).

Peru will visit Venezuela, while Bolivia will host Uruguay in the 14th round next Tuesday.

It is worth noting that the top six teams will qualify directly for the World Cup finals, while the seventh will enter the global playoff. Ecuador, who will host Venezuela on Friday, got a three-point deduction for falsifying the birth documents of Byron Castillo in the previous qualifiers.

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