Montevideo, Uruguay
The legendary Centenario Stadium is a historically difficult terrain for Chile, having only managed to salvage a 2-2 draw in nine qualifying games on the way to the 2010 World Cup, when the ‘Roja’ were led by Marcelo Bielsa. And this time it was no exception.
“Loco” Bielsa made his official debut in the “Celeste” and longed to do so with a win. In the first few minutes the visitors had control of the ball and caused danger with a header from Maripán. From then on, the Charrúas established themselves on the pitch and created scoring opportunities.
Darwin Núñez tried in the 20th minute, but Brayan Cortés responded well. Then, in the final phase, it had an effect: in the 37th minute, Nicolás de la Cruz sent the ball to make it 1-0 after a brilliant joint game, while Federico Valverde made it 2-0 in the 46th minute with a powerful right-footed shot – Foot shot from outside the penalty area.
In the plugin, Darwin Núñez kept looking for his target, he tried up to three times, but couldn’t beat Cortés. In the 53rd minute, Pellistri missed a clear chance to score, but in the 70th minute, Núñez gave it to De la Cruz, who just had to add it to secure the win. But just three minutes later, Arturo Vidal scored the goal after taking advantage of a rebound off the post and placing the shot.
Uruguay are delighted with Bielsa’s arrival, even more so as he debuts with a win in qualifying. The next day the Uruguayan team has to play against Ecuador. For its part, Chile hosts Colombia with the aim of getting its first points.
Did you know…
Winner. Uruguay is the first team in the entire history of the World Cup to start twelve consecutive qualification processes (1982-2026) with a victory.