The South American Championship U20, called the Sudamericano U20, is currently taking place at Ecuador (18 January-11 February). During the Matchday 2 of the final round, Uruguay earned their second win in a row while Venezuela clinched a comfortable win over Ecuador.
Final group : Uruguay 6 pts, Venezuela 4 pts, Argentina 3 pts, Brazil 1 pt, Colombia 1 pts, Ecuador 1 pt.
Outclassed by Uruguay in the previous game, the Argentinians earned their first win in this final round against Colombia (2-1). After only 17 seconds, Macnelly Torres netted the opener. The Boca Juniors starlet is the joint top scorer of the tournament with 5 goals. In the second half, Colombia scored the equalizer thanks to the 17-year-old midfielder Juan Hernandez. Reduced to 10 men after the Eduard Atuesta’s sending off, the Caftereros conceded a goal during the injury time : Lautaro Martinez scored the winner after being set up in the box by Tomas Conechny.
Few hours later, Uruguay edged a crucial 2-1 win over Brazil. After a brilliant pass from David Neres, the Corinthians defender Guilherme Arana broke the deadlock to score his second goal in this competition. Once again, The Uruguay captain Rodrigo Amaral saved his team. The Nacional Montevideo fired a shot from 30 yards to level the scoring. He is now the joint top scorer of the tournament with 5 goals. Then, the Uruguayans were close to take the lead but the Nicolas De La Cruz’s free-kick hit the post. Reduced to 9 men after the Lucas Cunha and Lyancoa’s dismissals, the Seleçao was punished in the injury time : after a huge mistake from the Brazilian goalkeeper Lucas Perri, Matias Vina scored the winning goal for the Celeste. Thanks to this win, Uruguay are in good position to secure their spot for the next World Cup U20.
The third game of the day was spectacular as Venezuela earned a 4-2 over hosts Ecuador with goals from Yangel Herrera, Ronaldo Chacon, Sergio Cordova as well as a Yeferson Soteldo’s penalty. In the second half, the hosts reduced the deficit thanks to two penalties converted by Pervis Estupinan and Bryan Cabezas.
REMINDER : the top four teams of the final tournament will qualify for the 2017 FIFA U20 World Cup
Amayes Brahmi - Follow @AmayesB
Credits Photo : CONMEBOL