Brazil look to cement group lead in Copa America

ANKARA

After beating Venezuela 3-0 in the 2021 Copa America opener on Monday, Brazil want to consolidate their Group B lead with a victory over Peru on Friday.

This year's Copa America finals started on Monday and will run through July 10.

Argentina are also looking to take their first win in the tournament in their clash with Uruguay on Saturday.

Group A

In Group A, Argentina will play against Uruguay this Saturday at 000GMT.

Looking for their first win in the tournament, Argentina got only a 1-1 draw in the opening match of Group A against Chile on Tuesday.

Fans all around the world are anticipating the clash of two teams, as they both boast strong squads.

Argentina feature big names like Angel Di Maria, Sergio Aguero, and of course superstar Lionel Messi, considered one of the best players ever.

As the national team with the largest number of titles in the tournament, Uruguay also have world-class players like Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani.

In another Group A match, Chile will play Bolivia on Friday.

After drawing with Argentina in the first match, Chile will also be looking for their first win.

The match will start at 2100GMT.

Paraguay are currently leading Group A on the back of their Tuesday 3-1 win over Bolivia.

Group B

In the wake of their Monday 3-0 victory over Venezuela in the 2021 Copa America opener, Brazil want to consolidate their Group B lead by besting Peru this Saturday at 200GMT.

Besides stars like Thiago Silva, Roberto Firmino, and Casemiro, Brazil's biggest weapon is Brazilian superstar Neymar Jr.

In the opening match, Neymar racked up one goal and one assist.

In another Group B match, Colombia will play Venezuela on Thursday at 2300GMT.

While boasting key players like Duvan Zapata and Juan Cuadrado, Colombia didn't include star James Rodriguez in their Copa America 2021 squad.

Now equal on points with Brazil, Colombia are in second place in Group B.

Copa America – the oldest national team football competition in the world – is the prize fight among South American national teams.

Since 1993, tournament organizer the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) started to invite national teams from outside South America to take part.

But in 2021 only 10 teams are competing in the tournament:

Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay in Group A

Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela in Group B

Originally Copa America 2021 was to be hosted by Argentina and Colombia, but they withdrew from hosting before the tournament began.

CONMEBOL accepted the two countries’ withdrawal due to violent protests in Colombia and the COVID-19 outbreak in Argentina. Brazil is doing the hosting honors instead.