An annotation by Juanda Fuentes, from FC Barcelona, gave Colombia a 1-0 victory over Argentina in the last match of Group A of the U20 South American Championship, a result that secured Colombia's spot in the hexagonal stage and eliminated Argentina.
At the Pascual Guerrero stadium in Cali, Javier Mascherano's team failed, and the host selection delivered the final blow with Fuentes' goal, which was helped by goalkeeper Franco Herrera.
With this result, the hosts finished in second place in Group B with 8 points, two less than Brazil, who accumulated 10 points, and one more than Paraguay, who finished with 7. Argentina finished fourth with three points, while Peru ended last without any points.
In the first half, Colombia took the initiative in the early minutes, led by midfielder Daniel Luna. However, Argentina stole the ball from the hosts and tried to approach Luis Marquinez's goal.
Mascherano's team, driven by the need to win, lacked depth in their attacks but heavily relied on the sparks from winger Brian Aguirre from Newell's Old Boys and midfielder Nico Paz from Real Madrid Castilla.
One of Argentina's clearest opportunities came when Aguirre sent a cross to Axel Encinas, and he took a shot that went over the crossbar.
Meanwhile, Colombia suffered a blow during the match when Luna, the player who provided clarity to the team, was injured and had to be substituted in the 35th minute after receiving several rough fouls from opponents.
In the second half, the Colombian team was the first to approach the goal in a counterattack led by Alexis Castillo Manyoma, who assisted Fuentes. Fuentes took a powerful left-footed shot that was saved by Herrera.
However, the hosts retreated and started playing deep in Marquinez's goal area.
That's how Argentina got close to scoring with shots from players like Paz, which were comfortably saved by the local goalkeeper.
In the 74th minute, when Argentina had already lost some momentum and the match had become stagnant, Fuentes scored the winning goal.
The Barcelona forward received a pass from Castillo Manyoma on the edge of the box, turned around, and took a seemingly unpromising shot that found the back of the net because Herrera couldn't catch it and it went through his legs.
The goal was decisive. Mascherano's team lost all momentum, and in the end, time expired. Colombia held on, and the hosts will be in the final hexagonal stage with Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay, while Chile, Venezuela, and Ecuador will determine the last two qualifiers on Saturday.
EFE.