“How can we not qualify if seven out of ten enter?” The phrase that defines these Qualifiers | OPINION

So six will dance with happiness, maybe seven, but three – maybe four – will feel horribly bad as never before if they fail in the attempt. . That is why the end of this World Cup can be cruelly painful.

“Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Ecuador and Colombia are safe”, is another of the most heard statements. And Chile…? And Paraguay…? And Peru…? Everyone has renewed hope, although not the same present. Of the last ten World Cups, Argentina and Brazil attended 10, Uruguay 7, Colombia and Paraguay 5, Ecuador 4, Chile 3, Peru and Bolivia 1, Venezuela remains virgin. So, after almost four decades, the bottom three remain the same: Peru, Bolivia and Venezuela.

The present does not invite a waste of hope. Gareca is no longer there and the players are the same, but four years older. And the list of injuries allows us to affirm that against Paraguay and Brazil there will be an alternative Peru, almost a Peru B. So it does not look like an idyllic start.

But, be careful, everyone has their own thing: Paraguay has been absent from the World Cup for three years and Chile has been absent for two. An example of the prevailing discouragement in Paraguay is that, to avoid noise or adverse weather, the Paraguayan Association decided to take the match to Ciudad del Este, a town not very fond of football, 327 kilometers from Asunción, the central stage of Guaraní football. “There, we will both be visitors.”declared Juan Reynoso not without reason.. It may be a bad decision for Albirroja, although the injuries in Peru balance things out.

South America will kick off. The long road to the United States, Mexico and Canada 2026 began. It will last just over two years. And for those who compete in the play-offs, two and a half years. Paraguay-Peru, Colombia-Venezuela and Argentina-Ecuador will open fire. This Friday they will complete Uruguay-Chile and Brazil-Bolivia.

A Qualifier that presents an unusual fact: 7 of the 10 national coaches are Argentine. And that will mark the end of several generations. In Uruguay, for the moment, Suárez and Cavani are no longer there (nor is Godín, who retired from football), the greatest references of the Tabárez era. Thousands of fans complain online because they still consider Suárez “the best 9 in Uruguay.” But Bielsa has other plans. Vidal, Alexis Sánchez, Charles Aránguiz, Gary Medel and Eugenio Mena are still in Chile. At least they will start the race. In Colombia only James Rodríguez and Juan Guillermo Cuadrado remain as testimony of past struggles. It is the team with the highest average age of the ten contenders. In a competition so long over time, that factor can work against you.

It almost goes without saying that Argentina is in a moment of splendor. World champion just eight and a half months ago, all of his players are going through a splendid present, they all score goals, especially Messi, Lautaro Martínez, Julián Álvarez. Even so, Lionel Scaloni continues to renew. He has already called up 100 players since he took over as coach in October 2018. Eighty-four thousand five hundred fans will give a fervent welcome to the Albiceleste on Thursday at the Monumental when they face Ecuador. And so far there are no defections due to injury, so we expect to see the gala eleven: Draw Martínez, Nahuel Molina, Romero, Otamendi and Tagliafico; De Paul, Mac Allister, Enzo Fernández; Messi, Julián Álvarez and Di María.

In front, Ecuador, the football that has evolved the most on the continent in the last thirty years – a sentence shared almost unanimously in all countries. A very strong Ecuador defensively, with many variants in the middle and with Enner Valencia in fantastic condition up front. However, FIFA’s 3-point penalty is still an annoying topic, like a pimple that won’t stop itching. It should not be forgotten that the first two games of the Tricolor are tough: Argentina and Uruguay. In the worst scenario – two defeats – added to the specter of three points less, they could generate concern. But the quality of the Ecuadorian staff does not generate pessimism, quite the opposite. The question is how he will assume Felix Sanchez, its Spanish coach, the competitive heat of the South American Qualifiers, without a doubt the most competitive in the world. It is a new scenario for him. The tension with which each match is experienced in this part of the world is an unavoidable factor.

Uruguay receives to Chili in what is already experienced as a neoclassical, due to the repeated fights between the two in recent years. Always hot match. La Celeste will debut on points under the leadership of a great technical director: Marcelo Bielsa. You will undoubtedly see an offensive, voracious Uruguay, very different from the traditionally conservative one. Already in the friendlies of recent FIFA dates we saw a team that was fast in movement, without much elaboration in the midfield, which went from defense to attack at a dizzying pace. Chile will have many new names and it is unknown what style its DT Eduardo Berizzo.

Brazil, full of excellent players, will begin the competition with a rarity: it will have an interim coach, Fernando Diniz, driver of Fluminense, current semifinalist of the Libertadores. This will be until Carlo Ancelotti takes over in June next year, today at Real Madrid. Brazil will regret the absence of Vinicius, injured, although they are still ultra-favorites to get the six points against Bolivia and Peru in their first two appearances.

Beyond that, almost no one trusts his selection. It’s simple: there are no players. Not a single figure.

Colombia It could be one of the revelations, more by game than by names. Coach Néstor Lorenzo has given him an attractive team game, based on fast functioning and great mobility. In eight friendlies he has achieved 6 wins and 2 draws, but what is exciting is the ways. A very superior football than what she saw in the previous qualifier. Above all, what was observed in the sensational victory over Germany in Gelsenkirchen, showing overwhelming superiority, which could have even given them one more goal. “We are the world champions of friendlies”, they repeat with a certain pessimism in Colombia, however, the reality is that those eight friendlies motivate hope. In the premiere, the yellow shirt will have as a rival Venezuela, who waits crouching. Fernando “Bocha” Batista, Vinotinto strategist, finally hopes to take Venezuela to a World Cup for the first time.

There is always the revelation, the share of surprise in every tournament. What will it be in this case…? Who will be left out…? We will have to wait two years to find out.