Pride is all that is at stake in the final match in Group C of the Copa America when Uruguay and Jamaica conclude their tournaments in Santa Clara in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Both would have expected to at least still be alive going into the final group match but after back to back defeats to Mexico and Venezuela both will be boarding the earlier flight home much to their disappointment. Someone has to finish bottom though and that will be the losers here.
You could probably forgive Uruguay their defeat to Mexico who are clearly a very good side but the loss to Venezuela when they had to win was unforgivable. Even a draw would have kept them in the tournament and Edinson Cavani’s glaring late miss summed up their season so far.
Uruguay have missed Luis Suarez’s presence up front but I’m not sure how he would have prospered because the creativity from the midfield has been found massively wanting and if they are to go out with a win then that is something that will have to improve.
Jamaica gave it a really good go even with 10 men in their opening match against Venezuela but ultimately they have paid the price for not being able to put the ball in the back of the net because they were heavily outclassed by Mexico in their second match.
Jamaica lacked a little bit of composure in the key areas against Venezuela. If that was purely down to excitement and pressure of the game then maybe we’re going to get a good performance out of them here given that they can relax and play with the freedom that their nation loves to show.
Team News
Luis Suarez hasn’t been used in the tournament so far because of a niggling injury and you wouldn’t think he is likely to play in a dead rubber so once again Edinson Cavani is expected to lead the line unless Abel Hernandez and Diego Rolan get their own chance to shine from the off at this level.
Jamaica might choose to give a couple of their younger fringe players some experience at this level but I wouldn’t think they would make too many changes as the win here would do wonders for their belief and confidence going forward not to mention their world ranking.
Head to Head
This is the second year in succession these two sides have met in the Copa America. Uruguay won 1-0 in the group stage last year, their third win out of four against the Reggae Boyz. Jamaica have countered that with the one win of their own.
Betting
It is impossible to tell how this one is going to play out because we don’t know the mindset of the Uruguayans. They were incensed at the end of the Mexico game and that didn’t help their performance against Venezuela where it clearly carried over.
If Uruguay play to full capacity then there is a fair chance they’ll win this game but second guessing that isn’t for me. I’m tempted by a small punt on Jamaica to win the game with the pace they have against an aging defence but even then I’m not fully convinced by that.
There is enough value in the 6/1 that Uruguay do get exposed in much the same way that Mexico opened them up and I’ll give that a go for a small bet.
I’ll also have a dabble at Diego Godin to score anytime. He has scored Uruguay’s only goal in this tournament and is always a threat at set pieces with the power he attacks them with. Jamaica aren’t the strongest at defending them so there is always a chance the skipper doubles his tally for the tournament. That’s also a decent enough price.
Tips
Back Jamaica to beat Uruguay for a 1/10 stake at 7.00 with Unibet
Back them here:
Back D.Godin to score anytime for a 1/10 stake at 9.00 with Betfred
Back him here:
