Comments, predictions Colombia vs Argentina: Messi raises the white flag

Colombia host group leaders Argentina in Barranquilla in South American World Cup qualifying on Tuesday evening.

The hosts remain unbeaten after snatching a late equaliser in Peru last week, while Argentina have started qualifying brilliantly and may already be thinking about booking their tickets to North America.

Latest Colombia vs Argentina team information

Colombia are without two veteran players in their squad this time around, as veteran goalkeeper David Ospina and Davinson Sanchez are both out through injury.

Jhon Cordoba was a surprise starter ahead of in-form Aston Villa's Jhon Duran in Lima, but Duran could replace the Krasnodar striker in this game after coming off the bench against Peru.

James Rodriguez was only on the bench against Peru after not playing a minute since the Copa final, but Rayo Vallecano's new signing could be handed a starting spot and captaincy after playing 45 minutes.

Liverpool's Luis Diaz is the man to watch after his excellent start to the season, scoring the equaliser on Friday after already having three goals and an assist in his first three Premier League games of the season.

Argentina will be without Lionel Messi as he continues to recover from the ankle injury that forced him out of July's Copa final against their eventual opponents.

Defenders Nicolas Tagliafico and Leonardo Balerdi have also joined Bayer Leverkusen's Exequiel Palacios on the bench through injury, while Fiorentina's Lucas Martinez Quarta has been left out of the squad.

Angel Di Maria has retired after a successful summer, opening the door for Matias Soule, who could be handed his debut in this game after an impressive year in Serie A.

Taty Castellanos also received his first call-up and the striker made his first appearance, coming off the bench in the win over Chile.

Latest Colombia vs Argentina expected lineup

Colombia:

Vargas; Munoz, Lucumi, Mina, Mojica; Rios, Lerma, Arias; James, Duran, Diaz

Argentina:

E Martinez; Molina, Otamendi, Romero, Li Martinez; De Paul, Mac Allister, En Fernandez, Lo Celso; Alvarez, La Martinez

Latest Colombia vs Argentina football commentary

In a repeat of July's Copa America final, Colombia and Argentina meet with confidence that both are strong contenders to reach the 2026 World Cup finals as we approach the halfway point of qualifying.

Still, the match promises to be a thrilling affair, much like the Copa America final in the United States last summer, when Lautaro Martinez's 112th-minute goal gave Argentina their second successive title.

It was the first time Colombia had reached the final in 23 years, and Nestor Lorenzo has transformed the team since arriving in the summer of 2022.

The Copa final defeat was Lorenzo's first in 26 games in charge, and the first time Los Cafeteros have lost since losing to Argentina in a 2022 World Cup qualifier.

Colombia avoided defeat again in their first post-Copa game, as Luis Diaz's late goal salvaged a point in a trip to Peru on Friday night.

Despite being considered the favourites to win with just two points from their first six games, any away result in CONMEBOL qualifying is a positive.

That took Colombia to 13 points, and they are now third, seven points off the automatic qualifying spots.

Argentina played earlier than many other teams on Saturday and took the opportunity to extend their lead by beating Chile 3-0 at home.

Alexis Mac Allister, Julian Alvarez and Paulo Dybala were on target as the Albiceleste eased past a struggling Chile side at the bottom of the table.

This leaves Lionel Scaloni's side 18 points from a possible 21, and has opened up a 12-point gap to the automatic qualifying places, as they look set to qualify for a 14th consecutive World Cup.

Argentina have not missed out on a finals appearance since 1970, and the format back then was much tougher than the modern 18-match format.

Away wins are rare in CONMEBOL, but Argentina have a good record on the road, as they are unbeaten in 13 away qualifying matches since losing at the heights of Bolivia seven years ago.

With Brazil not at their best at the moment, and both Uruguay and Colombia dropping points in their recent outings, Scaloni's side are now favourites to top the group, and maintaining this unbeaten run against a strong Colombian side would only strengthen their position. Games between the two nations are typically close, with extra time needed in the recent Copa final and penalties in the 2021 edition, while they drew 2-2 in their last meeting in Colombia.

Colombia have won just one of their last 13 meetings, with many ending in draws, and Argentina's strong away form suggests another draw is possible.

Colombia vs Argentina score prediction

Based on the above football comments, we and the world's leading football sites have given the following results for the Colombia vs Argentina match:

• Sportsmole: Colombia 1-1 Argentina

• WhoScore: Colombia 0-1 Argentina
• Our prediction: Colombia 2-1 Argentina

When and where to watch Colombia vs Argentina live?

To watch live the Colombia vs Argentina match in the World Cup qualifiers taking place at 3:30 on September 11, viewers can watch on TV360 here, Mytv system here or on online sports channels. Wishing viewers happy football watching moments.

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