The intent of Jorge Luis Pinto´s 22-man roster leaves no doubt as to his intent. A six-point sweep would put them in second place in the standings since Argentina will face Paraguay next weekend. The six points would leave them only nine points away from the magic number of 25 that is going to be needed in order to get to South Africa.
Atlético Madrid central defender Luis Amaranto Perea will make his return to the national team as he was injured in the first six matches of the Cafeteros´ qualifying campaign. He will be accompanied by Sevilla defender Aquivaldo Mosquera who will be going into his second full season with the Nervioneneses.
The Colombian backline as well as the midfield are solid, but the question mark is up front. Players like Radamel Falcao García, Edixon Perea, and Hugo Rodallega are scoring at a torrid pace in their respective leagues, but somehome they find themlselves in a rut when they wear their national team colors. Part of that is due to the scheme that Pinto plays that focsues more on possession as well as being solid on defense.
The solution could be in having MacNelly Torres as the midpoint man and Fabian Vargas behind him in more of an attacking function. This is part of Vargas´ new role at Boca Juniors that saw him flourish while Juan Román Riquelme was in Beijing.
The other solution would be to see Pinto open himself up to new ideas and allow Falcao García to have a more prominent role in the attack. He can do very little off the bench. The drama with these two is ongoing as Pinto will make every sacrifice (and every temper tantrum) imaginable to bring the River Plate star to the national team only to see him sit on the bench.
Goalkeepers: Agustín Julio (Santa Fe), Róbinson Zapata (Steaua Bucarest, ROU).
Defenders: Aquivaldo Mosquera (Sevilla, ESP), Amaranto Perea (Atlético Madrid, ESP), Humberto Mendoza (Atlético Nacional), Estiven Vélez (Atlético Nacional). Pablo Armero (América Cali), Camilo Zúñiga (Siena, ITA), José Portocarrero (Cúcuta Deportivo).
Midfielders: Adrián Ramos (América Cali), Giovanni Hernández (Junior), Macnelly Torres (Colo Colo, CHI), Freddy Guarín (Porto, POR) y Fabián Vargas (Boca Juniors, ARG), José Amaya (Atlético Nacional), Yulián Anchico (Santa Fe), Carlos Sánchez (Valenciennes, FRA).
Forwards: Radamel Falcao García (River Plate, ARG), Hugo Rodallega (Necaxa, MEX), Dayro Moreno (Steaua Bucarest, ROU), Edixon Perea (Gremio, BRA), Tressor Moreno (San Luis, MEX)
