Prior to kickoff at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, there’s been an uneasy atmosphere as ticketless fans appear to breached fences and police are making efforts to repel them away from entering.
Lionel Messi has taken to the turf to warm up for this final, and will shortly be joined by his Argentina teammates.
In this article, we will discuss the main points of Argentina National Football Team Vs Colombia National Football Team Lineups.
Here are the starting lineups for both teams:
Argentina (4-4-2 Formation):
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Emiliano Martínez |
| Right Back | Nahuel Molina |
| Center Back | Cristian Romero |
| Center Back | Lisandro Martínez |
| Left Back | Nicolás Tagliafico |
| Right Midfield | Ángel Di María |
| Central Midfield | Rodrigo De Paul |
| Central Midfield | Enzo Fernández |
| Left Midfield | Alexis Mac Allister |
| Forward | Lionel Messi (C) |
| Forward | Julián Álvarez |
Colombia (4-2-3-1 Formation):
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Camilo Vargas |
| Right Back | Santiago Arias |
| Center Back | Davinson Sánchez |
| Center Back | Carlos Cuesta |
| Left Back | Johan Mojica |
| Defensive Midfield | Ricardo Ríos |
| Defensive Midfield | Jefferson Lerma |
| Right Wing | Jhon Arias |
| Attacking Midfield | James Rodríguez (C) |
| Left Wing | Luis Díaz |
| Forward | Jhon Córdoba |
These lineups reflect the tactical setups employed by both teams in the final match.
Argentina’s Starting XI
South American 2026 World Cup qualifiers resume this Saturday with a repeat of last summer’s Copa America final in Miami, which Argentina won with an late goal from Lautaro Martinez. Lionel Scaloni will hope his side can build on that win to secure top two placement in Group B.
Argentina enter this match having dropped points against Venezuela, though the match was relatively close and Scaloni may elect to keep his team unchanged; Lionel Messi will therefore lead his Albiceleste teammates.
Nicolas Tagliafico will likely begin at left back following a strong performance against Venezualans, with Rodrigo De Paul taking on more of a defensive role and hoping to stop James Rodriguez and co running freely down left flanks. Enzo Fernandez should play as central midfielder despite only recently returning to full fitness following groin surgery.
Mauricio Pochettino will seek greater consistency from Argentina under Mauricio Pochettino, and this could mean Gio Lo Celso receiving an extended run in his team. The Lyon midfielder has shown great promise during each appearance for Argentina national side and this could see him be awarded with an opening place in their starting eleven.
Colombia are facing several injury concerns ahead of this game, but should still rely on Daniel Munoz. Unfortunately he was sent off against Uruguay during their semi-final clash and will miss this fixture; Santiago Arias will likely get his chance at right back instead.
Hector Cuellar will likely miss out due to suspension, with Gabriel Villamil expected to replace him in the Bolivian starting XI. Additionally, Luis Haquin, Diego Medina, Jose Sagredo and Widen Saucedo should all feature.
Colombia’s Starting XI
Last time Colombia faced Argentina during World Cup qualifiers, Lautaro Martinez scored the winning goal for La Albiceleste to give them three crucial points and move them up the table. Now Nestor Lorenzo and Colombia hope to move one step closer toward qualifying for 2026 World Cup tournament held in United States, Canada and Mexico by defeating Uruguay on Friday night.
Colombia is an extremely dangerous team, yet their finishing can be inconsistent when facing Uruguay’s aggressive style of play. One key player for Colombia will be Liverpool’s Luis Diaz who can energize both his teammates and the crowd with his pace and dribbling abilities; his ability to dodge defenders allows him to create opportunities on the break or deliver dangerous crosses into the box.
Colombia will need to maximize their attacking talent if they hope to reach the final four. We should see them adopt a more direct style of play, allowing their wingers and forwards more opportunities to break through their lines more frequently.
Columbia’s success with their defensive midfield will depend on their ability to maintain possession and block any counterattacks from Argentina.
At this early stage of the matchup, both teams have traded possession. Colombia is doing better at recycling the ball but are failing to create many chances.
Argentina have had some strong build-up play, yet have struggled to get runners into the box. Their defenders have been too cautious and left their flanks exposed, leaving Argentina exposed.
At this juncture in the game, both sides are working tirelessly to outwit their adversary and gain an advantage. A goal from either side will set the tone for the remainder of the match; both will look to take advantage of their skilled attackers while being careful not to expose too much.
Argentina’s Subs
As expected, one of the most highly anticipated matches of Copa America’s semifinal round has arrived and fans sighed in dismay when Lionel Messi would not start for Argentina against Paraguay – however that didn’t stop their players taking this game seriously – from media personnel circulating the camp, they all appeared determined and focused as should be expected for such an important encounter.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni has had to adjust his usual lineup due to several injuries, but this change is less substantial than it may appear. His squad still possesses enough depth that it can play multiple ways and count on Rodrigo De Paul, Giovani Lo Celso, and Julian Alvarez as orchestrators while providing backup from behind.
VAR intervened briefly during 67th minute to review whether Manchester United’s Juan Mata had been offside during Colombian playbuildup in their half. No foul was called and he remained on bench throughout game.
79 min: Colombia makes another substitution as midfielder Juan Fernando Quintero takes over for James Rodriguez in attack, where he links well with Diaz and Cordoba while also posing an additional threat on counterattack.
85 minutes: Argentina have an opportunity as De Paul sends out a cross toward the right post, where Gonzalez leaps magnificently and heads it back across goal towards goal where it should have found an empty net. But Vargas dives left and makes an outstanding save.
As soon as the final whistle blew and the match concluded, Albiceleste were back into the quarterfinals for their third tournament out of three and all of their opponents could potentially go home early. At least they can take solace knowing they managed to put behind them their less-than-stellar performance and move forward; although far from perfect it was nonetheless an essential step towards better things ahead.
Colombia’s Subs
Colombia, despite losing its captain early on, remains competitive despite their loss. They sit third in Group H with 13 points from seven matches, having won five out of their seven contests thus far and avenged an embarrassing 3-0 loss against Peru earlier in the tournament with an emphatically pro-Colombia crowd at Bank of America Stadium cheering them on to victory on Wednesday evening.
Los Cafeteros go into this match with the aim of avoiding an earlier round elimination and joining Argentina as one of only two countries to have ever won three consecutive Copa America championships in CONMEBOL history. In order to do this, they must win this match while hoping that Chile, which defeated Venezuela 3-2 on Thursday night, loses its final Group B match against Uruguay.
Argentina enters this match with some injuries of their own: goalkeeper Sergio Romero has suffered from toe pain, while midfielder Marcos Acuna will miss time due to hamstring tightness. Furthermore, Paulo Dybala remains unavailable due to muscular injuries limiting Argentina’s offensive options somewhat.
German Portanova has assembled an outstanding squad, and is hoping that his players can step up in Messi’s absence to carry their team into battle. Although Messi may be one of their biggest stars, Portanova believes his squad can perform in big moments just fine without him.
Miami will test this Argentina team, but they remain undeterred in their determination to march onward. Even without their brightest star, this constellation of stars are eager to shine under scrutiny and take part in this historic fight for glory – their Twitter accounts will provide full updates as the showdown in Miami unfolds.