Venezuela knock Uruguay out of the Copa America without Suarez

Uruguay lost their second group match at the Copa America 1-0 to Venezuela, and the Sky Blues were already out of the tournament. Oscar Tabarez’s players created plenty of chances but could not find the net against Venezuela. The main culprit for the defeat was, of course, Edinson Cavani, who has a knack for missing from seemingly unmissable positions. Cavani had the chances to score at least a hat-trick against the Venezuelans, yet he did not score once. On this evidence Tabarez might as well have played him at full-back, and Uruguay could hardly have been worse off playing with 10 men than waiting for Cavani to score. For all the goals he has scored over his career, the forward looked badly out of touch whenever he found himself in a clear position, and it was hard to see how such a display earned his wages.

Cavani was not the only player to blame for the defeat, however. None of the Uruguayan players performed anywhere near their usual level on the night. They conceded a farcical goal after a positioning error by Muslera, and then everyone threw themselves into attack. They could even have lost by more, because their approach left the Venezuelans plenty of space, but Rafael Dudamel’s players did not make the most of their good counter-attacks.

Uruguay’s superstar, Luis Suarez, was sent to warm up, but 15 minutes later Tabarez told him he would not be used. The forward still had a hamstring problem, but he was ready to help his teammates, and Suarez was so angry after arguing with his coach that he threw his shirt. Suarez may well have had a point: even injured, he could have made a difference. Tabarez’s explanation was that he would not play anyone who was not 100% fit, but sometimes a coach has to take risks, and Uruguay paid the price by going home early.

Uruguay still had to face Jamaica in their third group game, with no chance of reaching the quarter-finals. The Sky Blues would now have to focus on the qualifiers for the World Cup 2018, where they sat 1st with 13 points from 6 matches (4 wins, 1 draw and just 1 defeat).

The Copa America Centenario

The 2016 tournament was a special edition. It was held in the United States from 3 to 26 June 2016 to mark the centenary of CONMEBOL and the Copa America, and it was the first Copa America played outside South America. Sixteen teams took part: all ten CONMEBOL members and six from CONCACAF. Uruguay arrived as the competition’s most successful nation, with 15 titles.

The defeat by Venezuela came at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia on 9 June 2016, in front of 23,002 spectators, with Salomon Rondon scoring the only goal in the 36th minute. Uruguay, who had lost their opening match 3-1 to Mexico, beat Jamaica 3-0 in the final group game with goals from Abel Hernandez, an own goal and Mathias Corujo. They finished third in Group C on 3 points, while Mexico and Venezuela both went through with 7, and Venezuela went on to meet Argentina in the quarter-finals. Chile went on to win the tournament, beating Argentina in the final.

The road to Russia

The focus on World Cup qualifying paid off. Uruguay finished second in the South American group with 31 points, behind Brazil on 41, and qualified directly for the 2018 World Cup. In Russia, Cavani answered his critics in the Round of 16 against Portugal in Sochi on 30 June 2018, scoring both goals in a 2-1 win. The run ended in the quarter-finals on 6 July 2018 in Nizhny Novgorod, where France won 2-0 with goals from Raphael Varane and Antoine Griezmann.