The era of Eduardo Berizzo with the Chilean national team began with a defeat (0-2) against South Korea in a friendly match. However, the South American team must turn the page, as they will make their debut this Friday against Tunisia in the Kirin Cup.
In that sense, the 'Toto' presented his starting team that will face the African team at the Noevir Kobe Stadium (Japan). Zacarías López, Eugenio Mena, Paulo Díaz, Joaquín Montecinos, Ronnie Fernández, Felipe Méndez, Pablo Galdames, Francisco Sierralta, Gary Medel (captain), Ben Brereton Díaz, and Jeyson Rojas will start the match.
On the other hand, Sebastián Pérez, Fernando de Paul, Benjamín Kuscevic, Nayel Mehssatou Sepúlveda, Jean Meneses, Diego Valencia, Óscar Opazo, Darío Osorio, and Tomás Alarcón will be on the bench.
In the previous, the Argentinean coach stated that these matches serve to test new players in different positions on the field. "Some players have already debuted and others will do so," said the coach during the press conference.
It is important to mention that the Chilean national team is preparing for the upcoming qualifiers since they did not secure a spot in Qatar. The other side of the coin is Tunisia, which qualified for the 2022 World Cup and has begun its preparation to face strong opponents such as France, Denmark, and Peru or Australia in Group D.
Chilean National Team Reports Positive COVID-19 Cases
The medical staff of the Chilean National Team reports, with the players' authorization, that Marcelino Núñez and Gonzalo Tapia have tested positive for COVID-19 in the active search controls carried out before each match.
The athletes are asymptomatic and are undergoing their respective isolation period under the supervision of the National Team's medical staff.