Copa America 2021 Preview
Chile kick off their Copa America campaign tonight against Argentina in what will surely prove a useful tournament for Martin Lasarte to experiment.
Chile played their fifth and sixth matches of Conmebol World Cup qualifying this past week and came away with two points, which, on balance, is one point less than what many had expected and predicted. The 1-1 draw away to Argentina had appeared to set Chile up nicely for a home game against Bolivia. However, the away side dug in and survived several scares to claim the point.
Chile’s profligacy in the match against Bolivia will in all likelihood prove to be very costly. Just 4 points separate bottom of the table Peru from Uruguay in fourth after six matchdays. Margins look tighter than ever in the world’s most competitive qualifying tournament.
Now attentions turn to the Copa America, a competition that Chile won in 2015 on home soil and followed it up a year later in the USA by winning the Centenario edition. Both of those victories came on penalties against Argentina, and they will face their neighbours from across the Andes in their opening match this afternoon (Monday 5pm in Chile).
In this week’s edition of Pichanga, we take a look at the squad that Chile will send to Brazil for each fixture. It is worth noting that after each match the team will fly back to their base in Santiago. If any players are not available due to Covid, then they can be replaced with players not in the original squad as Conmebol look to omit an embarrassing scenario where teams might not be able to field a full XI.
Goalkeepers
Claudio Bravo is injury-free and back as number one and captain of the national team. Bravo missed the 2019 Copa America with Gabriel Arias of Racing taking his place. The Argentine-born keeper was heavily criticised after Chile crashed out 3-0 in the semi-finals to Peru. However, Arias is now considered one of the best keepers in South America following his stunning form for Racing over the past year and looks like a solid backup to Bravo. Third choice for this Copa will be Gabriel Castellon, a surprise selection for many and it may be argued that this feels like a slightly wasted spot with La Serena’s 22-year-old Zacarias Lopez the outstanding keeper in Chile this year.
Defenders
Arguably in contrast to the peak of the golden generation, the centre of Chile’s defence is now looking one of the most competitive spots of the national team. Several players have impressed at their clubs at centre back this past season, Monaco’s Guillermo Maripan included, but giving away two penalties in the past two matches puts his spot under real pressure. If Chile go with a back four then Francisco Sierralta may take his place, the 22-year-old was in superb form for Watford in The Championship this past season helping them back to the Premier League. Sebastian Vegas looks to set to move to Europe this transfer window after shining in Mexico for Monterrey. His versatility may mean we see him at left-back especially with Chile only naming Eugenio Mena and Mauricio Isla as the two out and out regular FBs in the squad. Mena and Isla will operate further up the pitch if Chile go with a back three, as they did against Bolivia in Santiago last week.
Enzo Roco is back in the squad too, but questions mark remain over his quality at this level. Youngster Daniel Gonzalez is a very promising future centre-back option for La Roja, the Santiago Wanderers man has been one of the few bright points of a terrible Wanderers season so far. The fact he started for Lasarte in the friendly against Bolivia in March at right-back should not be ignored either. Gary Medel is set to start for Chile whether they play a back four or back three such has been his excellence in Chile’s two World Cup qualifiers against Argentina and Bolivia playing his role in both systems expertly. There was a fear that “Pitbull” would be rusty, but instead he looked the freshest player in the squad and his reading of danger proves unmatched to date for this role.
Midfielders
Arturo Vidal leads the names in the midfield, and after a controversial spell out with Tonsilitis and Covid-19, “El Rey” will be determined to show he can still be Chile’s talismanic figure as he was in Chile’s 2-0 win over Peru last year. He is a name that Argentina especially dread to face and he will be well motivated for that clash. Alongside him for much of the tournament expect to see familiar faces Charles Aranguiz (Chile’s best player over the course of the last two matches) and Erick Pulgar (scored v Bolivia). It would appear that the first choice alternative in midfield is Vélez midfielder Pablo Galdames who started the 1-1 draw against Argentina.
Waiting in the wings to fully prove themselves still are squad regulars in recent times Claudio Baeza (a more defensive option) and Cesar Pinares (a more attacking option). Both players may find themselves out of the picture if any of the youngsters outshine them. Pinares is especially consistently disappointing in a Chile shirt, and patience with the fanbase is wearing thin.
Marcelino Nuñez was one of the new names in this Chile call-up and few would argue it wasn’t deserved. He has impressed for Universidad Católica at both domestic and continental level this past year and his dynamism and energy in midfield could prove very useful to Lasarte as he continues to develop. He also showed to be a very intelligent and capable full-back/wing-back recently for Gus Poyet’s men, and with Chile lacking options there he may get minutes out wide.
Tomás Alarcón finally sealed a move to Europe this week with Cádiz CF in Spain proving to be his destination as he joins the La Liga club that finished mid-table in their first season back up in the top flight this year. Alarcón for many is the natural successor to Gary Medel, with similar aggressive qualities, similar stature and a decent passing range. Like “Pitbull” he also reads the game brilliantly and can play many roles in midfield and defence when required. It has been notable so far in his career that the shirt rarely hangs heavy on him and he deserves significant game time in Brazil.
Forwards
The absence of Alexis Sanchez for at least the group stage of the Copa America appears to be a significant blow. However with, 4 of the 5 sides in the group going through, it isn’t necessarily a fatal one.
Lasarte will hopefully use the first-team spot for the likes of Carlos Palacios, Ben Brereton and Clemente Montes to get more game time. Palacios has been out for form since his big-money move to Internacional in Brazil, while Brereton’s debut is much anticipated given few have seen him play before. The English-born forward offers Chile some much-needed physicality and height out wide or even through the centre. He finished the season in the second tier in England as Blackburn’s most prolific dribbler per 90 minutes and also won the most fouls too per game. I understand from the camp that he barely speaks a word of Spanish (and certainly not Chilean Spanish!) so he has been slowly introduced to the squad and the tactics. His chance will come, and so will Clemente Montes’. The Universidad Catolica winger made a real impact from the bench in a couple of Libertadores games this season which caught the eye of Chile coaches. Neither he nor Palacios were options at youth level for Chile, but both have broken into the senior setup ahead of others with much bigger profiles two years ago. Montes offers pace, skill and dribbling - he can finish too, a really exciting prospect.
The diminutive Jean Meneses appears to be a Lasarte favourite so far but lacks end product - although the hard work he gets through is impressive down the wing and he can play either side. Pablo Aranguiz was a slightly surprising call-up given his form has been inconsistent for Universidad de Chile these past few months. However, he is a talented player with an eye for a pass from wide who has been playing for the wrong manager at the wrong time in his career.
Although Chile have a number of increasingly exciting options for the wing, the centre forward position continues to prove a headache for Lasarte. Eduardo Vargas’s record at international level is impressive, but his form for his country in front of goal isn’t what it was pre-2017 levels. He will likely start, but if he continues to misfire then Felipe Mora (who started Rueda’s last 2 WCQs last year) and the promising youngster Luciano Arriagada should get chances. Colo-Colo’s Arriagada isn’t a regular starter, but he has impacted matches when given a chance - mostly from the bench with his confident running and good instincts in front of goal. His professional career to date sees him with 3 goals in 237 minutes as well as contributing well to other key plays, which is a record Lasarte obviously couldn’t ignore. He must get chances as otherwise it could be argued that time with Colo-Colo in the Copa Chile may have served his development better. An interesting situation to keep an eye on.
Expectations
The fact Chile have won this competition twice in recent memory with many of these players involved means that traces of belief can still be found that this could be a glorious campaign. The mood generally after the disappointing 1-1 draw with Bolivia was downbeat, but it is worth noting that even the most reactionary pundits in the country found time to praise most of the performance. A semi-final spot for Chile again would represent a decent showing given this will surely prove to be the moment where they really look to the future and experiment more with the XI. It is difficult to see past Brazil for the title, but as the six fairly tight World Cup qualifying matches for La Roja have shown - they shouldn’t fear anybody else.
VAMOS CHILE!
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