Chile faces Bolivia in a real final for a place in the next World Cup

Chili and Bolivia They will face each other this Tuesday at the Julio Martínez Prádanos National Stadium in SantiagoIn the match, corresponding to the eighth day of the South American Qualifiers for the United States, Canada and Mexico 2026, La Roja is looking to recover from the defeat against Argentina and obtain a victory that keeps alive its hope of qualifying for the World Cup, while La Verde is trying to prolong its good moment after beating Venezuela.

The Chilean team, led by Argentine Ricardo Gareca, is going through a difficult period. Despite having shown signs of recovery with victories in friendlies against Albania and Paraguay, and a worthy defeat against France, they were unable to maintain their positive streak and were eliminated in the group stage of the last Copa América without adding victories or goals. In addition, at the start of this double FIFA Date they were thrashed by the Albiceleste, which sank the trans-Andean team to second to last place with only five points. It is worth remembering that the two-time Copa América champions have not qualified for a major event since Brazil 20214.

“As long as the numbers are mathematically right and regardless of what happens tomorrow, as long as the numbers are right, I will fight and the players I represent will have to fight to the death. I will not give up,” said Tigre.

On the other hand, Bolivia faces its own challenges. Following the departure of Brazilian Carlos Zago as coach, Oscar Villegas took over. His debut was promising: he achieved a resounding 4-0 victory against Venezuela, the surprise team of the qualifiers. With this victory, the Verde dreams of returning to a World Cup after 30 years of absence. With six points, it is in eighth place and is out of the Repechage (that spot is currently held by Paraguay) due to goal difference.

“Just as we are respected at home, we have to earn respect away from home. We have to try to play good football, have clear ideas and go for the results. We have a lot of respect for our rivals, in this case, Chile, who are coming off a tough defeat. They will want to overcome it, and we will want to maintain a balance,” said Villegas.

Chile is in urgent need of points. The recent defeat at the Monumental stadium against Argentina by 3-0 has left the team with only one victory in seven matches, complicating its qualification for the World Cup. Bolivia, with the support of its new technical direction, is trying to take advantage of the moment of weakness of La Roja to improve its position in the qualifiers.

Both teams will be back in action in October. Ricardo Gareca’s team will have two tough matches, as they will host Brazil and then visit Colombia. Óscar Villegas’ team, for its part, will also face two difficult clashes. They will be at home against the Colombians and then face Argentina.

Formations:

Chili: Gabriel Arias: Mauricio Isla, Matias Catalan, Paulo Diaz, Gabriel Suazo; Victor Davila, Erick Pulgar, Dario Osorio, Eduardo Vargas; Ben Brereton and Carlos Palacios. DT: Ricardo Gareca.

Bolivia: Carlos Lampe; Luis Haquin, Marcelo Suarez, Diego Medina; Jose Sagredo, Robson Matheus, Gabriel Villamil, Roberto Fernandez; Miguel Terceros, Ervin Vaca; and Carmelo Algarañaz. DT: Oscar Villegas.

Stadium: Santiago National

Referee: Juan Benitez (Paraguay)

VAR: Derlis Lopez (Paraguay)

Hour:

15.00 Mexico City.

16.00 Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Miami (United States).

17.00 Bolivia and Venezuela.

18.00 Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile and Brazil.

Television: DSports

Standings: