Two surprising teams, Venezuela and Canada, will battle for a spot in the semi-finals of the 2024 Copa America at AT&T Stadium on Friday.
Venezuela, known as La Vinotinto, amazed everyone by finishing first in Group B with nine points, capping it off with a 3-0 victory over Jamaica last weekend. Canada, meanwhile, secured the runner-up spot in Group A after holding Chile to a 0-0 draw in their final group match.
Initially, Venezuela seemed headed for an early exit when they were down 1-0 to Ecuador late in the first half of their opening game. However, they turned things around and won all three group matches for the first time in the tournament's history.
Under the steady guidance of Fernando Batista, Venezuela's defense has been rock-solid, conceding only one goal in their last four matches across all competitions. If they win this match, Venezuela will reach the semi-finals for the first time since 2011. In their previous two quarter-final appearances, they lost to Argentina, including a 2-0 defeat in 2019.
Venezuela has been unbeaten in their last eight matches against CONCACAF opponents since a 3-1 loss to Mexico in June 2019. Canada, on the other hand, made history by advancing beyond the group stage in their first-ever Copa America, joining Mexico and Honduras as the only teams to do so.
Coach Jesse Marsch has quickly instilled a sense of unity and intensity in the Canadian team, which has helped them secure three clean sheets in their last four competitive matches after losing his first match in charge to the Netherlands (4-0). Canada has not scored a first-half goal all year, but they have also not conceded in the opening 45 minutes in their last eight matches.
This match will be only the third time Venezuela and Canada have faced each other, with the previous two encounters ending in draws, thanks to a late equalizer by Canada.
INJURIES & SUSPENSIONS
For this quarter-final match, Venezuela will be without Darwin Machis, who received a second yellow card in their third group game. Nahuel Ferraresi and Miguel Navarro, who were both benched against Jamaica due to being on yellow cards, are expected to return to the starting lineup.Yeferson Soteldo is likely to step in for the suspended Machis in midfield. Jefferson Savarino and Cristian Casseres are also vying for spots in the starting eleven as attacking midfielders.
In their last match, Venezuela's all-time leading scorer Salomon Rondon netted his second goal of the tournament, as did Eduard Bello. Eric Ramirez scored his second goal for the national team as well.
On the Canadian side, they are likely to be without Tajon Buchanan, who broke his tibia in training and had to undergo surgery. Ismael Kone, who recently signed with Ligue 1 club Marseille, is expected to return to the lineup after sitting out their final group match due to a yellow card.
Jonathan David, who scored Canada’s only goal in the group stage and now has 27 international goals (just two behind Cyle Larin's record), will be key for their attack. Goalkeeper Maxime Crepeau has secured consecutive clean sheets, adding to Canada's defensive strength.
POSSIBLE LINE-UPS
Venezuela possible starting lineup:Romo; Aramburu, Ferraresi, Y. Osorio, Navarro; Martinez, Herrera; Bello, Casseres, Soteldo; Rondon
Canada possible starting lineup:
Crepeau; Johnston, Bombito, Cornelius, Davies; Kone, Eustaquio; Ahmed, David, Laryea; Larin
EXPERT PREDICTIONS
Venezuela 2-1 Canada
The Canadians have shown great resilience, but in a high-stakes match where composure is key, we believe the experience of players like Rondon will help lead Venezuela to victory.
