🔊 Will the hosts get their revenge for the first-round defeat? We'll find out soon enough. This is arguably the marquee matchup of the upcoming round in South America. The reigning world champions will host Colombia at the "Monumental" Stadium in Buenos Aires. The Argentinians have already secured their tournament objectives and can afford to rotate their lineup. Meanwhile, the Colombians stumbled in their last match, complicating their position in the standings. Can they secure an away victory against the champions? We'll address this question in our match prediction.

Head-to-Head

📊 In the last nine head-to-head encounters, Argentina have claimed five victories, while Colombia have won twice. Two matches ended in a draw.

The most recent meeting took place on September 10, 2024, during the first round of qualifiers. On home soil, Colombia emerged victorious with a 2-1 win.

After a goal by Yerson Mosquera, Argentina quickly responded with a strike from Nico González. However, a penalty was awarded against Emi Martínez, and Colombian captain James Rodríguez confidently converted it, securing the win for his team.

Argentina Team Overview

⚪ Lionel Scaloni continues to prove that under his leadership, Argentina remain one of the strongest teams globally and are strong contenders for victory in the next major tournament.

🔵 In their last match, the Albiceleste secured their top spot in the standings by defeating Chile 1-0 away. The lone goal was scored by Julián Álvarez.

🏆 With three games left in the qualifiers, Argentina lead second-placed Ecuador by 10 points. This means that even three consecutive losses wouldn't knock them off the top of the table.

Colombia Team Overview

🟡 Néstor Lorenzo's squad stumbled once again. Despite applying pressure on Peru's goal and dominating possession, Colombia failed to register a single shot on target, dropping crucial points in their home fixture (0-0).

🔵 Their winless streak continues: three losses and two draws in a row. "Los Cafeteros" sit in sixth place with 21 points. The standings remain tightly contested: they trail second-placed Ecuador by just 3 points, but their lead over seventh-placed Venezuela is equally slim—only three points.

🔗 After facing Argentina, Colombia will have relatively easier opponents in Bolivia and Venezuela. However, given the team's current struggles, there's no guarantee that everything will go according to plan in those matches.

Latest news

Argentina

🔝 Argentina's national team boasts the best attack with 27 goals scored and the second most reliable defense, conceding only 8 goals in these qualifiers.

💊 Ahead of the upcoming match, all players are available—there are no injury concerns.

Colombia

🎙 After the match against Peru, the national team's head coach Néstor Lorenzo shared his thoughts: “I believe we lacked the intensity and precision needed to win. We allowed Peru time to regroup and organize their defense. We were missing that final pass. It wasn't our best performance—we struggled to finish our attacks effectively. We were expected to win. I think we should have more points than we currently do. This slump is costing us dearly. But we're heading to Argentina with the aim of getting a result.”

❌ Personnel issues continue: Al-Nassr forward Jhon Durán has left the squad due to recurring back pain. In his place, América de Cali midfielder Rafael Carrascal has been called up.

⚽ Goal Prediction

⚽ Goal Prediction

There's little doubt that the Argentinians will find the back of the net. The real question is how many goals they'll manage to score against their opponents.

A bet on Argentina's team total over 1.5 goals comes with quite an attractive set of odds.

Let's not forget: Argentina's national team is the highest-scoring side in the current qualifiers, averaging 1.8 goals per match.

🚩 Corner Prediction

In the first-round match, despite Colombia's victory, Argentina had the edge in corner kicks: two for the hosts compared to four for the visitors.

In the upcoming home fixture, the "Albiceleste" also appear to be favorites in terms of corner kicks. Given their expected attacking dominance, our recommendation is a bet on Argentina to win on corner kicks with a handicap of (-1.5).

Editors' Prediction

Editors' Prediction

Despite having already secured the top spot, Argentina are unlikely to have forgotten their defeat in Colombia and will be eager for revenge. The hosts clearly outperform their opponents in all key areas: from statistics and current form to individual player quality. Lionel Scaloni's side have secured four consecutive victories and are in excellent form. We struggle to see how Colombia could claim a win in this matchup. Moreover, it's possible the visitors might not even find the back of the net. Our prediction: Argentina win.