FULL TIME: Colombia 2-0 Uruguay
Colombia are in the quarter finals for the first time in their history! A thoroughly deserved victory. Not much to say, other than (1) James Rodriguez: what a player; (2) Luis who?; and (3) Brazil: watch out!
James Rodriguez scored twice, his first an absolute stunner and contender for goal of the tournament, as Colombia made the quarters for the first time in their history
Updated
Sat 28 Jun 2014 17.54 EDT
First published on Sat 28 Jun 2014 14.30 EDT
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90 min +2: A Colombian free kick down the right. They achieve nothing with it bar wasting time, but then that's more than enough.
90 min +1: Cavani concedes a needless foul down the left. He's got a cob on. "Seeing Jose Pekerman substitute James Rodriguez makes me think of Germany-Argentina 2006 when he took Riquelme off for Cambiasso," writes Kári Tulinius. "In case any football-bloody-hell happens and Uruguay score two goals in added time, it would be good to have Rodriguez on the field. But still, Uruguay aren't looking likely to score one right now, let alone two."
90 min: There will be three added minutes of this. Colombia are sitting back, and look in control.
88 min: Mejia slides in on Arevalo Rios. Free kick, 40 yards out. Ramirez, not for the first time, gives Ospina catching practice. Here's Pete Masters: "Having watched Brazil–Chile and thinking that England were a million miles from that standard, I go out to the bar and watch this match, as it turns out, next to a gaggle of loud, contented Columbians and a pair of glum Uruguayans, pretending to be Argentineans. Can’t help thinking now that it’s a good job we came off second best to Uruguay. If we’d been on the receiving end of Colombia, we’d surely have gone home with an even bigger inferiority complex." Give it time, Mr Roy's got another two years to reduce expectation even further.
86 min: A final substitution for Colombia. The heroic Rodriguez makes way for Ramos.
85 min: From the corner, Godin guides a half-decent header wide right of the goal from 12 yards. How Italy will watch that and wonder. After the action, Godin gets involved in a shoving match with Yepes, who appears to like this sort of daft nonsense. The referee reminds the pair that everyone involved is over three years old, and we continue.
84 min: Ramirez hoicks a dismal free kick into the Colombian box from 40 yards out. Ospina wanders off his line, whistling, and claims. Easy. But he's thrown into serious action a few seconds later, when Uruguay come back at their opponents, Cavani lashing a fierce volley towards the bottom-left corner. The keeper, who has been fantastic tonight, tips round the post. Corner.
82 min: Uruguay attempt a little triangulation on the edge of the Colombia box. It doesn't come off, despite Cavani and Ramirez's best efforts, though Colombia took their time to interject and clear that. Nerves are beginning to kick in, by the looks of it. A Uruguayan goal now will really put the cat among the pigeons. "If we think that ITV's sense of moral outrage is bad here imagine what it'll be like for the Germany-Algeria game on Monday," shudders David Wall. "They've had 32 years to get wound up about that one."
80 min: Guarin comes on for Cuadrado.
79 min: A fairly aimless clank down the Uruguay right. But somehow, after a bit of pinball, it ends up at the feet of Maxi Pereira, clear in the area! He's never quite in control, though, and his attempted lift into the net is smothered by the outrushing Ospina. Hearts in mouths for Colombia.
77 min: Komik kutz here. Uruguay are trying to take a quick free kick down the right. Armero toe-punts the ball away. Problem is, Ramirez is coming in to blooter the set piece upfield. The ball gone, he connects with Armero's arse instead! Haw! A proper hoof up the trousers! That's a wonderful homage to the silent movies. Perfectly timed. Paul Merton could make an hour-long BBC Four documentary about that. Anyway, the yellow card comes out, for Armero, and also to Lugano on the bench, for excessive yap.
74 min: Stuani wins a throw down the right. He's been very busy. And Uruguay find the striker from the throw. His back's to goal, at the right-hand corner of the box. On the turn, he launches a strange looping shot towards the top left. It's dropping in, the ball flying along a glorious arc. Ospina, chasing back, tips over. Not 100% sure that was going in, but it wasn't far away. The corner, from the left, finds the head of Gimenez, who sends a lame effort miles wide left from the edge of the box.
72 min: Zuniga launches a cross into the Uruguayan area from the right. Martinez battles away at the far post, but can't get a run at the ball and misses. Goal kick. Another decent move, though, and Colombia not a million miles away from the goal that'd finish this.
70 min: Cavani, down the left, whips a cross to the far post for Stuani, who heads harmlessly wide right. The cross a little bit too high, in fairness to the substitute. "Is the Uruguayan team perhaps under the misimpression that the four-month ban on 'involvement in football' also applies to them?" quips Scott Martin, cracking wise while he can, with the scoreline remaining as it is.
69 min: But they've not shored it up very well, not instantly anyway. A free kick 25 yards out for Uruguay. A clever ball down the right channel from Ramirez forces Armero into conceding a corner. The set piece is eyebrowed just over the bar by Cavani, ludicrously left free on the right-hand corner of the six-yard box. This isn't over quite yet.
68 min: Colombia respond by shoring it up, swapping striker Gutierrez for a defensive midfielder in Mejia.
66 min: The last throw of the dice from an increasingly desperate Oscar Tabarez: Hernandez for Gonzalez. "Colombia are so utterly going to finish third, aren't they?" writes Craig Smaaskjaer, staring into his crystal ball. "They are Sweden 1994. They are Croatia 1998. They are the plucky buccaneers, helmed by a balls mad and twinkly eyed genius bent on nothing but national glory and the acquisition of partaaay opportunities."
64 min: Cristian Rodriguez makes like a bomb down the inside left, then fires a heatseeker towards the bottom right. Ospina, at full stretch, parries magnificently. Uruguay's best effort. Their dander up, crosses are thrown in from both wings, right then left. Ospina punches the first clear, then smothers the ball from the second. This is better from Uruguay.
63 min: Gutierrez backflicks to release the excellent marauding full back Zuniga into the Uruguayan area. Godin slides in to concede a corner, else that'd have been a third goal. The set piece is banged clear by Maxi Pereira.
62 min: Cavani goes on a determined wander down the middle of the pitch, but he's got no support and soon enough is crowded out of it by four yellow shirts. "Forget Adrian Chiles's wounded sense of morality, the person I feel sorry for is Cavani," writes Lee Dixon David Wall. "He's sacrificed himself for Suarez for years, at times being played as a defensive centre-forward so that Suarez can be the focus of their attack, so much so that he's played himself out of the form he had at Napoli. At least for PSG Zlatan makes it worth his while."
59 min: Alrevalo Rios threads a low shot towards the bottom left corner from a position 25 yards out down the inside-right channel. It's a very decent effort, but one that's gathered well by Ospina. Colombia are very much in the ascendency here, but a Uruguayan goal would plant a few seeds of doubt. Remember: their last loss in competitive football came at the hands of Uruguay last year.
58 min: A frustrated Cavani stamps on the toes of Rodriguez. How petulant. The referee does nowt.
56 min: Gimenez is booked for Nigel de Jonging Guiterrez, 25 yards out. Rodriguez looks for his hat-trick goal, but for once his effort is devoid of wit, straight into the wall. "Thank God for Luis Suarez!" cries Gary Naylor, making a liar of me and the cast-iron GUARDIAN NO-SUAREZ GUARANTEE™ in the preamble. "England would have been on the end of this!"
54 min: Uruguay also have their concerns right now, of course. To this end, they replace Forlan and Alvaro Pereira with Stuani and Ramirez.
52 min: Uruguay haven't really done anything wrong, but they've conceded twice, blootered to a pulp by the first, impotently carved open by the second. Colombia are brilliant. Brazil - average Brazil - must be feeling very, very worried right now.
GOAL!!! Colombia 2-0 Uruguay (Rodriguez 50)
James Rodriguez is fast becoming the star of the 2014 World Cup. But this is a stunning team goal. The ball's shuttled right to left, three passes which find Armero free on the wing. He whips a deep cross to the far post, where Cuadrado heads back into the centre. Rodriguez is on hand to sweep home into an empty net, Muslera having left his position in the centre in a futile attempt to claim Armero's cross. That was staggeringly good football from Colombia, whose star man has five goals in the tournament now!
48 min: James Rodriguez with a free kick for Colombia down the left. Whipped in, and headed behind for a corner on the right that comes to nothing. "I, the greatest hero in Uruguayan football history, also applaud your silence on the recent unpleasantness. Yours, Alcides Ghiggiavitis." I don't even need to tell you whose email that is.
And we're off again! Colombia kick off, with Gutierrez, Martinez and Rodriguez running in a straight line down the middle in formation, with goalscoring intent. You don't see that too often. Uruguay aren't having any of it. They fly up the other end, Alvaro Pereira winning a corner down the left. It's sent straight into the hands of Ospina. A lively start to the half.
Half-time entertainment: Here's the legendary Uruguayan captain Obdulio Varela doing what Luis Suarez couldn't: brazenly working over an opposition player without shooting himself in both feet. (As told in the 1950 World Cup 'final' MBM from And Gazza Misses The Final, written by the excellent Rob Smyth and some other reprobate.)
28 min: O TAPA DE OBDULIO!!! URUGUAY'S CAPTAIN THROWS HANDS!!! Bigode has been tussling with Ghiggia down the right, and struggling to contain him, it has to be said. He's nudging the willowy winger in the back. Varela and Jair join in the tussle as the ball flies out for a throw. Varela takes a step towards Bigode and reaches to pat his opponent on the head, as he often does in matches. This time, however, he gives Bigode a little cuff round the ear! Bigode - the literal translation is Moustache - bristles at this. He's shaken by Varela's slap, as are the crowd. The referee demands the two players embrace, which they reluctantly do. Vuruguay colarela struts off talking loudly to himself, pulling at the front of his light-blue shirt with his fist, every inch the victor of that little spat. You sense he thinks he's put down some sort of marker and that the defender won't be so quick to foul Ghiggia again. Imagine being in Bigode's boots just there, with Varela - a man with biblical willpower and a face made of granite - approaching you, arm cocked, ready to clip you round the lug. Imagine the chill that would shoot down your spine.
HALF TIME: Colombia 1-0 Uruguay
And that's that for the half. Colombia just about the better side, though Uruguay finished it the stronger. Colombia are deservedly ahead, though, thanks to that shot by the ridiculously exciting James Rodriguez. That shot, looking again, just clipped the underside of the bar when it flew in. An absolute belter. "A thing of beauty when a volley goes in off the crossbar!" enthuses Ruth Purdue, who is very correct. Preach on, sister!
45 min: Colombia haven't done much lately. It's been all Uruguay, in fact. Looks like they'll be going in behind, but this is nicely balanced. We should have quite a second half to look forward to. "I've had a soft spot for Uruguay ever since Dario Rodriguez's ridiculously good volley from a corner in 2002," writes Matt Dony. "Being a Liverpool fan obviously adds further layers of emotion to my feelings towards the current crop. (Yes, I still like Suarez. What of it, Chiles?) If they're going to go out, though, it may as well be to that goal."
42 min: Forlan very nearly releases Maxi Pereira into the Colombian box with a clever reverse pass down the inside-right channel, but Armero steps in, having read the intention well. Then Forlan rakes a low ball down the left wing, and is inches away from sending Cavani clear on goal. But Zapata slides in to hook it away. More stunning defence. Why don't Uruguay always play like this? Forlan is dropping deep and causing a lot of trouble, his playmaker's hat wedged onto his turnip at a jaunty angle.
39 min: The corner's eventually taken from the left. It's headed on to Cristian Rodriguez, coming in from the right. He meets the ball first time and sends a rising volley towards the top left. Ospina parries brilliantly, and Cavani was lumbering in an offside position anyway. A terrible match up until the goal. Since then, it's been fantastic fun.
37 min: Space for Alvaro Pereira down the left. The low ball whipped in is bundled out for a corner. Before it's taken, Forlan and Yepes nearly start that brawl I was wondering about, the former blocked off by the latter in the move that led to the corner, the Uruguayan striker then shoving back. But the referee's over quickly to demand they simmer down.
35 min: Cavani sticks out a leg and upends Zuniga. A common or garden foul. Aguilar turns up and thinks about starting a fight with Cavani. The pair repeatedly slap each other on the hands and arms. Grown men, these two. Throw a proper punch that'll start an entertaining bench-emptying brawl, if it means that much to you, or get on with your jobs.
33 min: Uruguay have gone up the gears. Cristian Rodriguez runs towards the Colombian box with purpose, but is upended on his face. Cavani takes the free kick, 25 yards out in a reasonably central position. He whips it towards the top left, but it's a little bit too high. A decent response to going behind from Uruguay.
31 min: Uruguay's Rodriguez - Cristian - is in position to head home, ten yards out, level with the right-hand post. But Cavani's whipped cross from the left, a carbon copy of the one he sent in for Suarez against England, is headed out of play by Aguilar on the right. The corner's cleared. But that's better from Uruguay, who have to come out now.
30 min: Now Rodriguez whips in a cross from the right with the outside of his boot, and nearly finds Martinez. Muslera comes out and collects. Or was he going for the top left? You wouldn't put it past him.
WHAT A GOAL THIS IS!!! Colombia 1-0 Uruguay (Rodriguez 28)
Well this came out of nowhere, and it is utterly brilliant! Colombia ping the ball around awhile in front of a solid light-blue line. Uruguay clear. The ball's headed back towards the area. Rodriguez, his back to goal, 30 yards out, chests down, turns, and meets the dropping ball, lashing an unstoppable volley into the top-left corner. That was in from the moment it left his boot. An absolute stunner!
26 min: A defiant atmosphere in the stadium, given how poor this game has been so far. Bedlam, bedlam, bedlam.
23 min: From a free kick 30 yards out, just down the left, the incredibly adventurous Zuniga has a lash. Nope! But Colombia are on top here, without quite threatening the Uruguayan goal. "Herr Murray," begins Mac Millings, so you know what's coming. And what's coming is nonsense. "We Germans are 100% behind your decision not to mention the infamous biting incident in today's text-based commentary. Yours, Mats Gummels." And five minutes later, he sends this. "Olá, Scott, We, the people of Brasil, also back you in your quest not to mention the quasi-cannibalistic act of a few days ago. Best wishes, Edson Arantes do Gnashimento." I know I shouldn't encourage him. But he's got needy eyes, like Luis Suarez Old Shep.
20 min: Cuadrado slips Zuniga into space down the right. His low cross is hacked out of play for a throw, which is upgraded off Godin for a corner. Colombia attempt that corner Manchester United tried against Chelsea a few seasons back - Inverness Caley Thistle attempted it last season too, though I forget who against - when one player pretends to place the ball in the quadrant, but taps it into play. Zuniga taps, then walks off. Rodriguez then walks over, pretending he's about to take, before dribbling with purpose towards the area. The officials pull him back. Bah. That's always a great move to watch. Anyway, the resulting corner is useless, which is just as well, because I've gone on a bit there.
18 min: Godin goes long, raking a high ball down the inside-left channel for Cavani to chase. The striker's got the jump on Zapata, and reaches the box first, but he can't quite take down the pass, which had a little too much juice on it.
16 min: Olé! Olé! Olé! It's all Colombia at the moment, and everyone in the Maracana seems very happy about it. Passing it around a lot. Ping, ping, ping. They're enjoying 71% of the possession. But not really going anywhere right now. Uruguay seem happy enough too.
14 min: Forlan has a pop from distance. He falls over while doing so, and the ball just about stays in Rio. Not a classic yet, this. Plenty of time to go. "ITV are all wrong," begins Hannah, who could have left it there and got an A+, but adds: "It's impossible to dislike Uruguay now that they've replaced their pantomime villain with Diego Forlán, who has to be one of the most likeable men in the entire tournament. I'm supporting Colombia, mind, but the romantic in me still wants Forlán and his beautiful blond curls to do something heroic. That man has the hair of a champion."
12 min: The right-back Zuniga is sent on a romp down the middle by a pass from deep-lying striker Martinez. Total football. Zuniga's shot from 30 yards flies straight at Muslera, who makes a song and dance of gathering, but manages it in the end. "Jeesy peeps, Scott," begins Simon McMahon. "Saw Elbow at Glastonbury last night, watched 'When Andy Won Wimbledon' this morning, Brasil win on penalties this afternoon, now Old Shep on the MBM. I'm an emotional wreck already. And happy birthday Evie McMahon too, 16 today. Well yesterday actually, but hey, it's the weekend. Who cares?"
10 min: Uruguay show a little something up front for the first time. Forlan hoicks a free kick from near the halfway line into the box. Cleared. But Uruguay come back at Colombia, and win a throw down the left. Alvaro Pereira Gary Nevilles one into the area, but Zapata heads clear. It's not particularly creative, but it's something.
7 min: Martinez skitters down the left channel. Cavani, chasing back, bowls him over 40 yards from goal. Miles out, but Cuadrado has a belt anyway. It's a fizzing effort, and clatters off the head of Yepes, up and over the crossbar. The defender, up to cause trouble at the free kick, was offside anyway. But Colombia have started well. And they're also surrounding the referee every time they're fouled, reminding the referee of Uruguay's reputation, and hoping a card comes out.
5 min: The excellent Rodriguez picks up where he left off against Japan: going for goal. He curls the free kick towards the top left. Muslera flicks away. Decent effort.
4 min: Cuadrado embarks on a determined run down the inside-right channel. His face hit the floor just outside the area, Alvaro Pereira the guilty man. Free kick in a very dangerous position, reward for the first positive act of the match.
2 min: A slow start, with both teams taking a feel of the ball. Enough time to point out that ITV's anti-Uruguayan riff has gotten really old. Already. Anchorman Adrian Chiles has been slagging them off since the start of the programme, in the style of the half-cut blowhard propped up at the bar who's best given a wide berth on the way to the lavvy. And now Andy Townsend is banging on about how nobody likes them. We get it, their striker did a bad thing. Can we move on? You wouldn't have caught Brian Moore braying on like this.
And we're off! The winners of this second-round tie will face Brazil in the quarters. You'd have to say that on the evidence of today's earlier match, whoever wins here should be the favourites. Brazil don't look like World Cup winners at all. Neymar's going to have to Maradona them to the title. Anyway, never mind that. Uruguay get the ball rolling. As you'd expect, there's a hell of an atmosphere in the Maracanã. If this is half the game Brazil-Chile was, we're in for a treat.
The teams are out! Colombia are in their shimmering yellow with fashionable blue-and-black sash, while Uruguay sport their famous light blue. To the anthems! And what a brilliant pair of ditties these are. Uruguay’s is a rare old production, all the stops pulled out. The full version lasts six minutes! A military strut which occasionally segues into full-on sassy sashay, it's rather more than just your bog-standard march. It’s the sound of a country going for it! It’s the sound of a country not stopping to think twice! It’s the sound of a country saying: it’s on!!!
♩♪ ♫ ♬ This sacred gift, of glory we've deserved: tyrants tremble! ♩♪ ♫ ♬
Colombia’s is dripping with life-affirming jauntiness too. This one’s blasted out, by law, at 6pm every night on the telly. Such legislation would be a royal pain the arse in the UK, our dirge leading to a spike in suicide rates around tea-time. But this gives Colombians a rare old boost, I’ll be bound, the sort of lift that guarantees a fine time long into the night.
♭♮♯ In agony, the Virgin tears out her hair / And bereft of her love leaves it to hang on a cypress / Regretting her hope is covered by a cold headstone / But glorious pride hallows her fair skin ♭♮♯
And once more with feeling!
♭♮♯ In agony, the Virgin tears out her hair / And bereft of her love leaves it to hang on a cypress / Regretting her hope is covered by a cold headstone / But glorious pride hallows her fair skin ♭♮♯
Touching scenes in the Uruguayan dressing room. He's gone. But they've still laid out his kit.
In fairness, sometimes it's hard to let go.
♩♪ ♫ ♬ I remember the time at the old swimmin' hole
When I would have drowned beyond doubt
But old Shep was right there
To the rescue he came
He jumped in and then pulled me out ♩♪ ♫ ♬
Dramatis personæ
Colombia, who let the reserves enjoy a run-out against Japan, name ten of the 11 who beat Ivory Coast to secure qualification. The striker Jackson Martinez, who scored twice in the 4-1 win over Japan, replaces midfielder Victor Ibarbo: Ospina, Zuniga, Zapata, Yepes, Armero, Aguilar, Sanchez Moreno, Cuadrado, Rodriguez, Martinez, Gutierrez.
Subs: Vargas, Arias, Carbonero, Guarin, Ibarbo, Mejia, Balanta, Bacca, Ramos, Quintero, Valdes, Mondragon.
Uruguay's veteran striker Diego Forlan, 35, fills the gap left by You Know Who, while Maximiliano Pereira returns in place of Nicolas Lodeiro: Muslera, Maxi Pereira, Gimenez, Godin, Caceres, Pereira, Gonzalez, Arevalo Rios, Rodriguez, Cavani, Suarez Forlan.
Subs: Munoz, Fucile, Gargano, Hernandez, Stuani, Lodeiro, Perez, Ramirez, Coates, Silva.
Referee: Bjorn Kuipers (Holland)
Oh Luis, Luis, Luis. What have you done? Been a silly sausage, that’s what! You sank in the incisors*, and that was the end of your World Cup, packed off home in disgrace, given four months to think on. Shame, shame, shame. And so very sad.
The gleeful nature of the resulting pile-on has been difficult to comprehend. Yes, the man deserves some sort of ban, and plenty of the opprobrium sent his way too. And cut slack was always going to be in short supply: he'd given plenty of folk good reason to dislike him in the past, by playing silly buggers, so no surprise a few are taking the opportunity to hoover up a wee toot of that most irresistible drug, schadenfreude. But even so. Proportion, please! Bottom line is, we’re all missing out as a result of this nonsense: one of the best players in the world won’t be strutting his stuff at the peak of his powers at this World Cup. Imagine if the crafty so-and-so had ended up facing Brazil, with the ghosts of 1950 swirling around! What a story that encounter would have provided: a brand-new World Cup legend almost a nailed-on guarantee. Instead all we’ve got is some tawdry controversy. How terribly modern. How terribly depressing. Nobody's fault but his own, I guess, but still, what a waste. No place for Suarez in the Uruguayan World Cup pantheon alongside Juan Alberto Schiaffino, Alcides Ghiggia and Obdulio Varela (who would have dealt with Giorgio Chiellini by giving him a sharp clip around the ear, and got away with it too, but that's another story). Just a shame, is all, that we’ll be left forever wondering. Oh Luis!
The situations aren’t exactly like for like, but this sorry state of affairs is mildly reminiscent of Diego Maradona’s expulsion from USA ’94. There was another crowd pleaser who had promised great things in the group stage, only to be deservedly but sadly turfed out on their lug for being a damn fool. Reaction around the globe was much the same: half the world shook their heads in sadness, their spirits crushed, as they considered the loss of El Diego's talent and the narratives that never would be; the other hopped around from foot to foot with big gormless grins on their faces as though their lottery numbers had just come up. But despite it all, the match that directly followed Maradona’s downfall was a stone-cold World Cup classic: Romania versus Argentina, a nutty end-to-end speed-rush of top-drawer footballing brilliance. The Maradona of the Carpathians, Gheorghe Hagi! Ilie Dumitrescu! Gabriel Batistuta! All that! During one astonishing period of play, there were four chances in 40 seconds. Four chances in 40 seconds.
!
That game ended 3-2 to Romania, though it could have been anything. Afterwards, an unsung team wearing yellow suddenly harboured realistic dreams of becoming world champions. Here, that gives me a thought ...
... so, could we have a match like that today, please? I suppose expecting too much from a game involving a shell-shocked Uruguay – who were grinding it out against England and Italy before Nippygate™, and are past masters at spoiling when needs must – is a fast route to severe disappointment. But you never know. Even the Suarez-lite version of La Celeste boasts Edinson Cavani in attack, with the veteran Diego Forlan hoping to reprise his heroics of 2010. Meanwhile Colombia are the free-scoring stars of 2014 so far: nine goals already, with the best goals-to-shots ration in the tournament (31% ahead of Holland’s 29.4%). They also boast this World Cup’s breakout star in James Rodriguez, who has scored five goals in his last five appearances, including all three matches here. Goals have been in the air in Brazil, so with all this hot talent on show, why not another thriller?
Colombia start as favourites – and they’ll be the crowd favourites too, you can be sure of that – though history is not their friend. The two teams have only met once at a World Cup, back in Chile in 1962. That was Colombia’s first-ever game at a finals, and they were beaten 2-1 by a team coached by Forlan’s grandpop Juan Carlos Corazzo. Uruguay came from a goal behind to stage a second-half recovery, breaking only three of Colombian captain Francisco Zuluaga’s ribs while doing so. There’s a touch more relevance in their recent match-ups: Uruguay have won six of the last eight, including the last encounter, a 2-0 qualifying win in Montevideo last September. Colombia will take succour from the fact that it was their last defeat: they’ve won six and drawn four of their ten games since. Those victories include, of course, their three group games here. They’re the form horse! Uruguay meanwhile are a wounded lion! Fancy calling the result? No, me neither, but a classic could be ours, if we just believe. Excited? Me too! It’s on, people! It’s on!
Kick off: 5pm in the Estadio do Maracana, Rio de Janeiro, home of Uruguay's greatest triumph; 9pm in London; 4pm in Bogota; 5pm in Montevideo.
Number of emails that will be published in this MBM about Suarez, and that's a cast-iron GUARDIAN GUARANTEE™: 0 (zero).
*: In the interests of balance†, other explanations are available.
†: Pun not intended.