Two of Atlanta United’s South American stars were fighting for their countries’ place in the 2018 World Cup Thursday, with Miguel Almirón and Josef Martinez competing in the South American CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifiers.
Josef Martinez’s Venezuela kicked off the day’s matches, and the Atlanta United forward started for the Vinotinto against powerhouse Colombia. While Venezuela are out of World Cup contention at the bottom of the standings, they put up a valiant performance against a strong side in a 0-0 draw. Martinez was not able to get on the score sheet, but he was a constant threat and thorn in the Colombian defenders’ sides before being substituted early in the second half, coming closest with this long-range missile that smacked off the crossbar.
El remate de @JosefMartinez17 se va por encima de la portería de @D_Ospina1#VENCOL#Eliminatoriaspic.twitter.com/ljZ9YpgTT8
— beIN SPORTS Español (@ESbeINSPORTS) August 31, 2017
Video via beIN Sports Espanol
Meanwhile, Miguel Almirón’s Paraguay were fighting for their tournament lives against back-to-back reigning Copa America champions Chile – and they were able to pull off the shock result of the night with a 3-0 road win. Almirón was constantly pulling the strings for the Albirroja and showed great workrate to hold off wave after wave of Chilean attacks in an impressive performance, before leaving the match with the result already locked down in the 78th minute.
The win means Paraguay still have a legitimate shot at World Cup qualification. They sit in 7th place with 21 points, but are just four points behind second place in an incredibly tight qualification pool. They return to their home field to face another powerhouse – Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani and third-placed Uruguay – in their second qualification game on Tuesday.
