James Rodriguez Could Feature Against England But Colombia Have More Than One Threat

By qualifying for the World Cup knockout stages from second place in group G, England have been placed on a side of the draw many consider to be more favourable

However, the downside of this is that their first game is, on paper, much tougher than the one they would have faced had they defeated Belgium and topped the group.

Instead of facing Japan who, on their showing in their final game against Poland, are one of the worst sides remaining in the competition, Gareth Southgate’s men will need to get past a Colombia team who look to be on the rise.

Even though there is the possibility that Colombia's star player, James Rodriguez, may not be fit for the last-16 clash, they have others who could cause England problems.

The doubt around Rodriguez’s fitness is a problem for Colombia, and their manager Jose Pekerman has voiced concern, but also gave a small hint that the player is raring to go.

"What I can say is I'm extremely concerned, it's a very tough situation for my team," said the 68-year-old boss.

"In the last match against Poland James felt fatigue, but it was only fatigue, and that was due to him not being present in the previous match.

"He trained normally for us until yesterday, he stayed on afterwards practicing finishing, free-kicks, penalties. He was fully fit in training and in the last training session there was no hint of any injury but right now I don't know where he stands, to be honest."

It has since emerged via the Colombian FA that the player has swelling around the muscle rather than a tear, suggesting he could be fit to start.

Regardless, Colombia have more than one threat when it comes to guile and creativity. When looking to neutralise opposition attacks, England should perhaps be worried about a player other than Rodriguez, even if the star man does take to the pitch.

Juan Fernando Quintero isn’t standing out statistically, although he does average more key passes than any other player in his team. He’s a rare example of a player who doesn’t care much for the data, and the data doesn’t care much for him.

In an age where being a good player is all about completion, whether this be of passes, interceptions, duels, or take-ons, Quintero is something of a renegade.

He’ll regularly top columns for statistics such as losses of possession and turnovers, and will often have a pass success percentage which leaves a lot to be desired. Despite this, he still has the potential to be Colombia’s most dangerous player.

If one of these attempted passes, or jinking take-ons does come off, they usually leave his team in a position to score. 

The prime example of this was his assist for Falcao in their game against Poland. The pass was inch perfect, but came about after several attempts were millimeters off target. The fine margins he plays in mean persistence is key, and there needs to be no fear of failure.

The River Plate man is also a goal threat from dead ball situations, as evidenced by his free kick goal against Japan

One big beneficiary of Quintero’s delivery has been Colombia’s other revelation, Yerry Mina. The towering centre back feeds on the accurate crosses from the side’s creative players, and has two goals in the World Cup already despite not featuring in the opening game.

No one has an answer to him in a one-on-one aerial battle, and with referees clamping down, albeit inconsistently, on wrestling in the box via the VAR, it makes him almost unstoppable.

Alongside him is Davinson Sanchez, who has the potential to be one of the best central defenders in the world. Given the showings during the tournament from some of the other contenders for this crown, at just 22 years old, Sanchez may already be at the very top.

England fans are generally familiar with him thanks to his performances for Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League, but he still has a slight under-the-radar feel about him when it comes to the appreciation of his performances.

Another player who has graced the Premier League, albeit briefly, is Juan Cuadrado. While the likes of Rodriguez and Quintero provide the silky skill, star quality, and guile, Cuadrado is the direct player who acts as the forward out wide on the right.

On the other side, left-back Johan Mojica has been putting in some eye catching performances for Colombia, building on some solid displays for La Liga side Girona FC with whom he's just signed a permanent deal.

BBC pundit Chris Waddle picked him out as a weakness and advised Raheem Sterling to attack him, but Mojica could counter this by being an attacking threat himself.

Conversely, Colombian football journalist for World Football Index, Simon Edwards, believes that Mojica has been one of their better players.

“I’m a big fan. He’s good going forward and has been surprisingly disciplined for Colombia at the World Cup, despite having no left midfielder in front of him in any of the games so far. He can also run the 100 metres in 11 seconds!”

Elsewhere, Wilmar Barrios is one of the most promising holding midfielders in world football, but Pekerman favourites Mateus Uribe and Carlos Sanchez are likely to get the nod in the centre of the park.

Up front, Falcao is looking like he needs perfect service if he’s to find the net again at this competition, but with Quintero pulling the strings behind him he’s more than likely to get it.

By the end of this game England could be wishing they’d they’d gone all out to win against Belgium, and opted for the ‘tougher’ side of the draw.