Category Archives: Colombia

The Reducer: World Cup Winners and Losers

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“Can I interest you in March Madness spiked with second chances? Because that’s what we’ve got on our hands. After a little more than a week of World Cup action, we’ve seen the defending champions go crashing out, the hosts wobble, new stars rise, and established stars cement their place in soccer boot ads for years to come. We’ve seen a German-born defender become an American hero, a Brazilian-born striker be partially blamed for Spain’s early exit, and Mexico’s manager turned into an anime character.” Grantland

World Cup 2014 group stage: day 8. COLOMBIA 2-1 IVORY COAST. URUGUAY 2-1 ENGLAND. JAPAN 0-0 GREECE.

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“A good game contested mainly in the wide areas, with the Ivory Coast full-backs overlapping and the Colombian wingers counter-attacking in behind them. Ivory Coast full-backs forward. This match was enjoyable throughout, but the tactical battle was very basic. Like in their opening match, the Ivory Coast tried to get their full-backs forward whenever possible, completely restructuring their system in order to get Arthur Boka and Serge Aurier high up the pitch. A couple of times, this meant that both Serey Die and Cheick Tiote dropped into the defence, to form a four-man backline along with the two centre-backs, while the full-backs pushed into the opposition half.” Zonal Marking

World Cup 2014: Colombia Defeats Ivory Coast, 2-1

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“Colombia came out on top in a rollicking game in Brasilia on Thursday, defeating Ivory Coast, 2-1, and almost certainly clinching a spot in the next round. The first half was played at a lightning-fast pace but remained scoreless as both sides’ strikers struggled. Colombia was first to break through in the 64th minute, as James Rodriguez jumped highest after a Juan Cuadrado corner and headed the ball into the net. Six minutes later they were up 2-0 after a Serey Die giveaway led to an easy goal for Juan Quintero.” NY Times

World Cup 2014: Group Stage, Day 3. COLOMBIA 3-0 GREECE. COSTA RICA 3-1 URUGUAY. ITALY 2-1 ENGLAND. IVORY COAST 2-1 JAPAN

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“4-2-3-1 and lots of width. The team news was significant, because Colombia coach Jose Pekerman chose to use a 4-2-3-1 rather than the 4-2-2-2 he often fielded throughout qualification. This meant James Rodriguez shifted inside from the left to play as the number ten, with Juan Cuadrado on the right and Victor Ibarbo brought into the side to play on the left. This meant Colombia had a very defined structure, with a creative number ten and two speedy wingers, and these three were the crucial players in Colombia’s victory.” Zonal Marking

The Rebirth of Colombia

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“Teams in the World Cup are generally split among three tiers. The top one consists of those that year in and year out field the best squads in the world—including most of the previous World Cup winners and finalists, such as Brazil, Germany, and Argentina. The bottom tier consists of those from whom no one expects much, other than that they show up on time for matches. Among that group this year are Iran, Australia, and Algeria. But most teams fall somewhere in that second tier, where fans begin the tournament holding out hope that—through a perfect storm of lucky bounces, mistaken calls, beneficial match draws, and brilliant overachievement—their team will cobble together a World Cup championship. Colombia, who have qualified for the World Cup for the first time in sixteen years, is one of these teams.” The Paris Review