Ecuador and Japan both showed improved form in their second Copa America games but we favour the latter team when they meet in Belo Horizonte. The Samurai Blue deserve plenty of credit for a 2-2 draw against Uruguay, whereas Los Amarillos still looked a little lacklustre in going down 2-1 to Chile.
Argentina have been frustrating to follow at the Copa America but still have a chance of scraping into the knockout stages when facing Qatar in Porto Alegre. La Albiceleste cannot afford an embarrassing early exit after disappointing at the World Cup and should be fully fired up for this crucial contest.
Colombia are already assured of finishing top of Copa America Group B and that could make Paraguay a value pick when they meet in Salvador. There was nothing between these two teams in World Cup qualifying, with each side snatching narrow away victories via stoppage-time strikes.
After goalless draws with Peru and Brazil at the Copa America, we’re hoping Venezuela open up more when facing Bolivia in their final Group A game. La Verde have conceded six times in losses to the same two opponents and should be there for the taking, as they must go for a win.
Chile look highly motivated to claim a hat-trick of Copa America triumphs, whereas Ecuador do not tend to put as much emphasis on this tournament. That view was backed up by their opening exploits, with La Roja beating Japan 4-0 and Los Amarillos losing by the same scoreline against Uruguay.
Uruguay are hard to oppose when taking on Copa America guests Japan in Porto Alegre after these sides made contrasting starts to the tournament. La Celeste enjoyed a 4-0 triumph over Ecuador, while the Samurai Blue were beaten by the same scoreline when taking on Chile in their opener.
Colombia will be confident of building on their surprise win over Argentina by brushing aside Copa America newcomers Qatar in Sao Paulo. However, their opponents showed they are not just here to make up the numbers when battling back to draw 2-2 with Paraguay in their Group B opener.
Peru will have been frustrated to kick off their Copa America campaign with a goalless draw against Venezuela but are worth sticking with to beat Bolivia. La Verde are coming off a 3-0 drubbing by Brazil and look by far the weakest link in Group A, with a lack of attacking firepower the main problem.
Japan return to the Copa America for the first time in 20 years as they face defending champions Chile in their opening Group C clash in Sao Paulo. Japan have been invited to the tournament alongside 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar for the 2019 competition and will be hoping to improve on their group-stage exit in 1999.
Uruguay head into the 46th edition of the Copa America looking to improve their record 15 championship victories when they face Ecuador in their opening match. La Celeste have a fine record in the competition, last winning the event in 2011 with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Paraguay in Argentina.
Paraguay are looking to get off to a winning start when they kick off their Copa America campaign against 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar at the Maracana. The Asian side will make their first appearance in the competition after accepting an invitation from CONMEBOL last year.
Eight-time winners Brazil kick off the Copa America on home soil against Bolivia on Saturday. They are still favourites to win the competition despite losing star man Neymar to an ankle injury.
With the Copa America starting this week – adding to a busy summer of international football alongside the Women’s World Cup, Nations League and Africa Cup of Nations – we’ve benchmarked this year’s teams against each other to see who might have the edge in Brazil.
Group C of the Copa America Centenario gets underway while us punters based on this side of the Atlantic are stocking up on beauty sleep ahead of another week at the grindstone. However, the Land of Nod has no anti-betting sanctions in place and, with Jamaica, Venezuela, Mexico and Uruguay … Read more