Copa America 2015 Team Guide: Colombia

June 11 sees the commencement of the 2015 Copa America in Chile, with 10 CONMEBOL nations and two invited sides from CONCACAF set to do battle over the course of nearly a month.

All week we’ve been running a series looking at each competing nation in turn, with our focus this time on Colombia, the side who excited and enthralled so much at the World Cup in Brazil last summer.

Other squads covered:

Group A—Chile, Mexico, Ecuador, Bolivia
Group B—Paraguay, Uruguay, Jamaica

Colombia have largely stuck with the squad from last summer in Brazil, though the likes of Eder Alvarez Balanta and Fredy Guarin are missing through injury. Striker Radamel Falcao is in, though, having missed last summer’s World Cup. The Daily Mail lists the full 23:

Goalkeepers: David Ospina (Arsenal), Camilo Vargas (Atletico Nacional), Cristian Bonilla (La Equidad)

Defenders: Camilo Zuniga (Napoli), Santiago Arias (PSV Eindhoven), Carlos Valdes (Nacional de Montevideo), Cristian Zapata (AC Milan), Jeison Murillo (Granada), Pablo Armero (Flamengo), Pedro Franco (Besiktas), Darwin Andrade (Standard Liege)

Midfielders: Alexander Mejia (Monterrey), Carlos Sanchez (Aston Villa), Edwin Cardona (Monterrey), Edwin Valencia (Santos), James Rodriguez (Real Madrid), Juan Guillermo Cuadrado (Chelsea), Victor Ibarbo (AS Roma)

Forwards: Radamel Falcao (Monaco), Carlos Bacca (Sevilla), Jackson Martinez (Porto), Teofilo Gutierrez (River Plate), Luis Fernando Muriel (Sampdoria).

Jose Pekerman is an experienced hand on the international stage, having led his home nation Argentina to the 2006 World Cup quarter-finals and then reaching the same stage with Colombia last year, exiting to hosts Brazil.

Three times named the South American coach of the year, Pekerman is known for his meticulous approach on a tactical level and will at times switch systems completely to suit a particular opponent.

At the Copa America, however, it is widely assumed he will stick to the 4-2-2-2 that will see James Rodriguez and Juan Cuadrado backed up by two holding midfielders.

There’s no doubting who is the key individual in the Colombia side, with attacking midfielder James Rodriguez shooting to worldwide fame with six goals at Brazil 2014, several of them skilful and spectacular.

A very impressive season on a personal level with Real Madrid has only seen James’ stock rise, with his final-third contributions as consistent as they were imperative on many occasions. Whether in a central position or slightly wider, James makes great use of space cutting infield and links play between midfield and attack extremely well.

Of equal importance is his tendency to attack beyond the edge of the penalty box, putting him in goalscoring positions on a regular basis.

Colombia’s captain for the Copa America, Radamel Falcao has had a season to forget despite coming back from a long-term injury. His loan move to Manchester United was a failure, and he’ll now be looking for a new team after they opted not to sign him permanently.

There’s no doubt that Falcao was a tremendous striking talent, capable of scoring all sorts of goals on a consistent basis, but he does need the team to play a certain way up to him and around him.

If Pekerman can get the support and service to El Tigre, he’ll plunder goals that could take Colombia far in the Copa—and will see Falcao’s own stock rise again, too. If he continues to look the lethargic, off-the-pace, lacking-in-confidence striker seen in the Premier League this season, it’ll be a different matter.

Colombia’s single tournament win in the Copa America came back in 2001, and they haven’t really done as well as could have been expected of them throughout history. With the current squad, the hope must be for at least a last-four finish this time.

Top results:

Winners: One (2001)
Runners-up: One
Last four: Five

Most recent finishes:

2011: Quarter-final
2007: Group stage
2004: Fourth place
2001: Winners
1999: Quarter-final

14 June, 4 p.m. (CLT)—Estadio El Teniente, Rancagua
Colombia vs. Venezuela

17 June, 9 p.m. (CLT)—Estadio Monumental David Arellano, Santiago
Brazil vs. Colombia

21 June, 4 p.m. (CLT)—Estadio Municipal German Becker, Temuco
Colombia vs. Peru

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