A monumental performance by Wuilker Faríñez, French Lens goalkeeper, saved a point for Venezuela on Thursday in its second outing in the Copa América.
The 0-0, first in the tournament, came in Goiania against a very offensive Colombian team that had more than half a dozen clear opportunities to score, but they were avoided by the 23-year-old goalkeeper.
At the Pedro Ludovico Teixeira Olympic Stadium, in Goiania, the team led by the Portuguese José Peseiro also got its first point in the Copa América in the match valid for the second day, which leaves the Coffee team as provisional leader of Group B with four units awaiting the duel between Brazil and Peru.
The Vinotinto defense came out nervous and the coffee growers’ attackers began to take advantage of that to steal balls in the opposite field and look for speed, mainly from Duván Zapata, who caused headaches for central defenders Francisco La Mantía and Luis Martínez.
The first clear opportunity for Colombia was started at minute 13 by Edwin Cardona from the left flank, where today he found many spaces, with a long cross for winger Daniel Muñoz, who first sent a low ball that Yerry Mina tried to push to the bottom of the network but did not reach.
Reinaldo Rueda’s team continued to attack, led by a very plugged-in Cardona, and had clear scoring opportunities with two shots by Zapata and another by the Boca Juniors midfielder that were saved by an elastic Faríñez.
In the complementary stage, the coffee growers continued to attack, but changed sides, this time they opted for the right where Juan Guillermo Cuadrado began to be more influential.
Precisely the Juventus footballer sent a center at minute 53 that Matheus Uribe controlled with his chest, who then did a Chilean and took a very good shot that did not enter the goal because Faríñez took the ball with a slap.
Venezuela, meanwhile, had a lot of difficulties getting past midfield and creating danger in the Colombian field, as Cristian Cásseres and Fernando Aristeguieta’s counterattacking incursions were stopped most of the time by the tireless Wilmar Barrios and by the central ones.
The coffee team began to lose intensity, so Rueda decided to send Jaminton Campaz to the field, who at 21 years old made his debut with the senior team, and the winger Luis Díaz, who gave his team a new air.
Although the game became rocky, with many fouls from both sides, Colombia kept the momentum and continued to create opportunities with Uribe, whose incursions into the area were key for his team, and Miguel Borja, who gave mobility to the Colombian attack , and that, as in the rest of the game, were stopped by Faríñez.
In the end, with Colombia focused on the attack, the referee expelled Díaz at minute 93 for stamping on a rival and neither team was able to break the zero on the scoreboard.
Colombia, which will play Peru on Sunday, reaches four points in the continental tournament, while Venezuela, which fell 3-0 in its debut against Brazil and will face Ecuador on Sunday, got its first point of the tournament thanks to a spectacular Faríñez. EFE. (JL).