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• Live updates posted throughout the games

Yesterday’s results

Bolivia 2-3 Ecuador
Argentina 1-1 Paraguay

Colombia-Uruguay

Did you know?

• Colombia and Uruguay both have a centre forward called ‘Luis Suarez’ in their squad. The former called up theirs – an uncapped player based with Granada in Spain – due to Falcao’s injury-enforced absence.
• The Celeste Suarez is joint-fourth on South America’s all-time leading marksmen alongside Ronaldo (62 goals). The 33-year-old is only two goals shy of Neymar, with Lionel Messi (71) and Pele (77) out in front.
• Victor Pacheco helped Colombia thrash Uruguay 5-0 in the Germany 2006 preliminaries. It is the Colombians’ joint-biggest-ever victory, and the Uruguayans’ heaviest-ever defeat, in a World Cup qualifier.
• Colombia have won five, drawn one and lost one of their last seven home qualifiers with Uruguay, scoring 17 goals and conceding just four in the process.
• Fernando Muslera is South America’s third-most-capped goalkeeper. With 116 appearances to his name, the 34-year-old is closing in on former Paraguay No1 Justo Villar (120), with Chile’s Claudio Bravo currently leading the way (123).
• Colombians Luis Muriel (18 goals in 34 appearances) and Duvan Zapata (18 in 28) formed a deadly strike partnership in the 2019/20 Serie A season, helping Atalanta score 2.6 goals per game on average and 22 more than champions Juventus overall.
• Los Cafeteros, largely thanks to goalkeeper David Ospina, have kept 11 clean sheets in their last 14 matches.

South America’s top international scorers

Statistics updated after Thursday’s games.

Chile-Peru

Did you know?

• Arturo Vidal is one goal shy of becoming one of very few box-to-box midfielders in the world to register 30 international goals.
• Chile have won five of their last six World Cup qualifiers against Peru.
• Peru have never won a World Cup qualifier away to Chile, losing eight and drawing two.
• Chile are fifth in South America and 17th overall on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking. Peru are sixth and 24th respectively.

Brazil-Venezuela

Neymar out, Ederson to start

Despite travelling to Brazil from Paris, Neymar has been ruled out of the games against Venezuela and Uruguay. Tite said that he will therefore give Roberto Firmino more of a free role and that Richarlison’s function will be that of a No9, while Gabriel Jesus is expected to form part of a three-pronged attack.

The Brazil coach also confirmed that Ederson will start in goal. The 27-year-old will win his tenth cap.

Expected Brazil XI

Ederson; Danilo, Marquinhos, Thiago Silva, Renan Lodi; Allan, Douglas Luiz, Everton Ribeiro; Roberto Firmino, Gabriel Jesus, Richarlison.

Did you know?

• Without Neymar, Everton Ribeiro will wear the hallowed Brazil No10 shirt.
• Thiago Silva will captain Brazil for the 33rd time. The 36-year-old will play his 92nd international, taking him level with Kaka as the country’s joint-13th most-capped player.
• Brazil have won 15 and drawn one of their 16 World Cup qualifiers with Venezuela, scoring 62 goals and conceding just one in the process.
• Venezuela goalkeeper Wuilker Farinez is merely 1.75m tall. The 22-year-old, who produced some breathtaking saves and became the first goalkeeper to score at a FIFA U-20 World Cup™ at Korea Republic 2017, already has 24 senior caps to his name.
• Venezuela reached their highest-ever position on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking – 25th – in November 2019. They are currently 28th, above the likes of African champions Algeria, Serbia, Russia and regional rivals Paraguay, Ecuador and Bolivia.
• Four members of Jose Peseiro’s squad are presently playing their club football in Brazil. Romulo Otero, Yeferson Soteldo, Jefferson Savarino and 20-year-old Jan Carlos Hurtado are at Corinthians, Santos, Atletico Mineiro and Bragantino respectively.

Top scorers in Qatar 2022 qualifying

Quotes

“So, so, so, so much. Much more than you can imagine. I’ve won the Champions League, the FIFA Club World Cup, the Premier League. [The World Cup] is what’s missing for me.”
Firmino to FIFA.com on how much he wants to win Qatar 2022

“I know we’re going to qualify, I’m absolutely certain. I say that from the heart, just as I said it after the opening game of the previous qualifiers.”
Renato Tapia to FIFA.com

“It’s my trademark! Of course I’ve imagined doing the pigeon dance in the World Cup. The supporters really like it, it especially appeals to kids. I’ve done it for the Seleção together with Neymar, I do it for my club, and I want to score goals and do it many times at the 2022 World Cup.”
Richarlison to FIFA.com

“Imagining myself helping Venezuela qualify for their first World Cup gives me goosebumps. I couldn’t put a price on that. It would be the ultimate.”
Rolf Feltscher

“It was a mix of sentiments. The explosion of happiness to make my World Cup debut, to live through the atmosphere at a World Cup. And then the frustration of the two injuries that ruled me out of games. Having that experience, and being ruled out of games when I was desperate to play, has made me want to be at the next World Cup even more.”
Danilo to FIFA.com on Russia 2018

World Cup participations

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• South American qualifying for Qatar 2022 resumed on Thursday
• Ecuador edged Bolivia 3-2 in a La Paz thriller
• Paraguay held Argentina to a 1-1 draw in Buenos Aires

Paraguay and Ecuador registered admirable results in Argentina and Bolivia to hike their hopes of reaching the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™.

Angel Romero dispatched a penalty superbly won by Miguel Almiron to put La Albirroja ahead at La Bombonera, and although Nicolas Gonzalez equalised just before the break, La Albiceleste, who had a Lionel Messi goal disallowed thereafter, were unable to find a winner. The draw left Paraguay on five points from three games, and ended Argentina’s 100-per-cent record in the South American preliminaries.

Earlier, Ecuador came from behind to eke out a thrilling 3-2 victory in Bolivia, with Carlos Gruezo’s late penalty determining the outcome. La Tri marched on to six points from a possible nine in Qatar 2022 qualifying and left their hosts pointless. Encouragingly for Ecuador, they have already played regional powerhouses Argentina and Uruguay, while two of their three games have been away.

Did you know?

• Nicolas Gonzalez scored Argentina’s first header direct from a corner in a World Cup qualifier in 20 years. Roberto Ayala had netted the last from a Juan Sebastian Veron cross against Venezuela in 2000.
• Angel Di Maria came on for his 103rd cap, leaving him just three shy of fifth-placed Diego Simeone on Argentina’s most-capped players.
• Paraguay have impressively lost just one of their last seven World Cup qualifiers away to Argentina.
• La Albirroja have stopped Messi from scoring on six of the ten occasions he has faced them.
• Paraguay are now unbeaten in their last four World Cup qualifiers away from home (3 wins, 1 draw).

Argentina 1-1 Paraguay

Paraguay made a promising start. Argentina goalkeeper Franco Armani did well to sprint from his line and deny Almiron a run on goal, before Gaston Gimenez broke into the box and flashed a shot narrowly wide.

Almiron then did superbly to win the visitors a penalty, sprinting purposefully, panicking the Argentinian defenders and forcing Lucas Martínez Quarta into a foul. Romero, who plays his club football in Argentina with San Lorenzo, made no mistake from the spot.

Argentina suffered a further blow as Exequiel Palacios hobbled off, with Giovani Lo Celso coming on in his place, but Nicolas Gonzalez suddenly had them back on terms. Lo Celso swung in a corner and the Stuttgart man produced a bullet header for his first international goal.

Messi, quiet until that point, flashed his incomparable genius and when the ball found Rodrigo De Paul, who recently told FIFA.com he’d “go to war” if Messi asked him to, unleashed a long-range screamer that Antony Silva did well to push round the post. Paraguay will have been relieved to hear the half-time whistle moments later.

Argentina began the second half in the ascendency. Lautaro Martinez won a ball he had no right to win inside the Paraguay box but couldn’t keep his snap-shot on target.

La Albiceleste then put together a brilliant passing move. It culminated with Do Celso cannily cutting the ball back for Messi, whose first-time finish beat Silva, only for the goal to be ruled out for a foul.

After 72 minutes, ‘The Atomic Flea’ sent a free-kick curling towards the top corner, but Silva produced a fine tip-over at full stretch. Messi had one last chance, a stoppage-time free-kick, but he sent it into the wall and Paraguay hung on for a point.

Quotes

“I applaud the great effort of our footballers. The game demanded a lot from us defensively. We prevented Argentina finding players in space.”

Eduardo Berizzo, Paraguay coach

“We were a bit uncomfortable in the first half. Lo Celso made a real impact. Once we encouraged ourselves to have more of the ball, we spent more time in their half.”

Nicolas Otamendi, Argentina defender

Did you know?

• Caicedo’s goal was scored just 49 seconds into the second half. It was the second-fastest second-half goal Ecuador had ever netted in World Cup qualifying.
• Ecuador win a World Cup qualifier away from home after trailing at half-time for the first time ever.
• Ecuador ended a run of five successive away defeats in World Cup qualifying. Their last victory on the road had been a 3-1 win in Venezuela five years ago to this month.
• Ecuador remain unbeaten away to Bolivia since 1997, when early goals from Jaime Moreno and Marco Etcheverry secured a 2-0 home win in France 1998 qualifying.
• Arce’s goal was his sixth in World Cup qualifiers and first with his left foot. Four of his previous efforts came with his right, with the other a header.
• Marcelo Martins’ goal against Ecuador saw him become Bolivia’s joint-leading all-time marksman alongside Joaquin Botero (20 goals apiece).
• Martins was born in Bolivia to a Bolivian mother and a Brazilian father, a former lower-league footballer. He represented Brazil at U-18 level, alongside FIFA Puskas Award winner Wendell Lira, Willian and Alexandre Pato, and U-20 level. Surprisingly, shortly after his 20th birthday, he accepted a senior call-up from Bolivia.

Bolivia 2-3 Ecuador

Ecuador began the game on top, but struggled to create any meaningful chances against a tight green wall. As the half wore on Bolivia began to get into the contest, and they made the breakthrough on 37 minutes.

Jorge Flores found Juan Arce inside the area, and he calmly fired the ball home. It was the 35-year-old’s first goal for club or country since scoring for Bolivar in January, and the 12th goal of his 16-year international career.

Angel Mena had a great chance to equalise almost immediately, but Carlos Lampe made a terrific save.

Within two minutes of the restart, however, Ecuador were level. Left-wingback Beder Caicedo burst forward and firmly fired home his first international goal. Mena then smashed the ball in off the underside of the crossbar to put La Tri ahead.

A wild start to the second half took another swing on the hour. Aerial master Marcelo Martins rose highest to head home an Arce corner and make it 2-2.

‘Triple M’ almost restored La Verde‘s lead soon after, but Alexander Dominguez made a fine save, before Bolivia substitute Henry Vaca hit the woodwork. The hosts continued to give it a real go, but with three minutes of normal time remaining, were punished.

The three goals Ecuador conceded in their opening two qualifiers were all penalties, which coach Gustavo Alfaro lamented in an interview with FIFA.com, but this time the spot-kick decision was in their favour. After a handball, Carlos Gruezo sent Lampe the wrong way from 12 yards to seize victory.

Quote

“It’s an illustration of this team, which always goes in search of victory. We were deserved winners. Sometimes your performances leads you to win by a bigger margin, but the most important thing is that we won.”
Gustavo Alfaro, Ecuador coach

South America’s top international scorers

Statistics updated after Thursday’s games.

FIFA Ranking

Argentina are eighth overall and third in South America, behind Uruguay (7th) and Brazil (3rd), on the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking. Paraguay are 35th overall and eighth in the region.

Ecuador and Bolivia are 60th and 79th on the global ladder, occupying the bottom two spots in South America.

World Cup participations

FIFA.com exclusives

Friday’s qualifiers

Colombia-Uruguay (17:30 local time)
Chile-Peru (20:00 local time)
Brazil-Venezuela (21:30 local time)

You can follow the three matches on FIFA.com.

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