In the early hours of Saturday, Colombia and Costa Rica clash in gameweek two of the Copa America Group D in what could be a pivotal game in the group.
ColombiaLos Cafeteros continued their recent decent form with a 2-1 victory over Paraguay in their opening Group D game, with Daniel Munoz and Jefferson Lerma both getting on the scoresheet.
The victory was Colombia’s ninth consecutive international win, having also mounted a strong 24-game unbeaten run.
Nestor Lorenzo’s team has undoubtedly had an eye for goal lately, as they have scored at least two goals in five of their previous six games.
Colombia’s recent Copa America record has been decent. They are unbeaten in four games over 90 minutes, having recorded back-to-back wins and scoring at least two goals in each victory.
Their recent outings at the Copa have also been relatively high-scoring, with over 2.5 goals scored in four of the last six matches.
Costa RicaLos Ticos started their Copa America campaign with a highly impressive goalless draw against South American heavyweights Brazil.
The draw means Gustavo Alfaro’s team is now unbeaten in their last four international games. However, it did end a short two-game winning run.
Costa Rica has been rock solid in defence lately, keeping four straight clean sheets. This stat is made the more impressive by the fact that they faced not only Brazil but Uruguay during the stellar defensive run.
Their recent defensive displays may just help Costa Rica improve their record at the Copa America.
They have won just one of their previous five games in the competition.Finding the back of the net has been a big issue lately in the competition, as they have failed to score in four of their last five Copa America outings.
The recent history of this fixture is heavily stacked against Costa Rica, as they have lost eight of the last nine games against Colombia.
What am I backing?Colombia heads into this game as big favourites to record a victory. However, Costa Rica showed they are unlikely to be an easy opponent against Brazil. The bet I am backing is a narrow Colombia victory.