It’s been a qualifying section worthy of its own tournament. Rather than merely a precursor to Russia 2018, the shuffling of the South American pack to see which of the region's talented but often unpredictable sides make it to the latest World Cup led to a qualifying section might which might be more tense than the final competition itself.
Brazil were back in the qualifying section after being given a pass to the previous tournament as hosts, and the regular highly competitive games certainly helped them. Coach Tite has the five-time winners almost living up to the mythical jogo bonito, but at the same time they have a certain steel and a definite plan.
Tite calls it jogo apoiado, or support game, and it allows his individual talents such as Neymar and Philippe Coutinho to thrive within a tight-knit team unit. They’ve conceded just 11 goals in 18 games, scoring 41, and qualified with ease.
The real drama lay below them as the rest battled it out for the three remaining automatic qualifying spots and one playoff place. With one game to go, the fate of six of the ten teams involved had yet to be decided.
Uruguay had already secured at least a place in the playoff, and had the easiest game of the lot, dispatching second from bottom Bolivia by three goals to nil in Montevideo.
Fifth met fourth in Lima where Peru hosted Colombia. A 1-1 draw left Peru in the play-off spot and Colombia qualified as the fourth automatic entrant, while Paraguay miss out again after a loss to bottom of the pile Venezuela, having also failed to make the tournament in Brazil last time around.
Chile weren’t sure what to expect in Sao Paulo against an already-qualified Brazil. Would Tite’s side be already on a beach in Sochi, or would they fight until the end with players looking to prove their worth? Unfortunately for Chile it was the latter, but they initiated their own downfall when Claudio Bravo spilt a Dani Alves free-kick presenting Paulinho with a tap-in. It wasn’t the best display from the stopper whose opposite number, Ederson, is his understudy at Manchester City and was making his senior international debut as Brazil strolled to a 3-0 win. The result means Chile won’t be going to Russia, with Peru going through to the play-off ahead of them on goal difference.
Perhaps the biggest story outside South America was whether Lionel Messi would be present at next summer’s main event, and he confirmed that not only will he be there, but that he has the ability to carry this team under Sampaoli. His hattrick in their final game against Ecuador saw him break the record for most goals in South American World Cup qualifying, and his performances since the former Chile manager arrived give plenty of hope that he can be Argentina’s one-man show in Russia. The high altitude in the Ecuadorian capital Quito has defeated many players, but couldn’t stop the Barcelona man guiding his team through.
This section of qualifying has provided plenty of storylines throughout, and the final results mean the continent’s two heavyweights will be present at the main event but current Continental champions, Chile, miss out. It also raises the possibility of a Neymar vs Messi showdown at some point down the line, as Tite’s team unit could come up against the Sampaoli show in the later rounds.
If the World Cup is anything like as tense, exciting, and as unpredictable as the CONMEBOL section of qualifying, then we’re in for a treat.
