Colombia vs Ecuador Copa America Prediction, Odds & Picks

How to Watch Colombia vs Ecuador

Why not just go with Colombia as the pick?

Colombia have a higher FIFA ranking than Ecuador, they’ve got a more talented roster, and unlike their upcoming opponents, they’ve also won the Copa America.

Nonetheless, Ecuador have been a dark horse of sorts in recent months.

In spite of their two losses this month in World Cup qualifying, Ecuador have held onto a spot at 3rd in the table, only behind powerhouses Brazil and Argentina.

As for Colombia, they are at 5th in the same table and have needed to go through a managerial change-up that has placed Rueda in charge since the beginning of the year.

Under a new head coach, things have clearly improved, but has it been enough to confidently say that they’ll clinch a win against Ecuador?

Rueda Must Fine-Tune His System With Colombia

It’s a small sample size, but let’s dive into Colombia’s two games this year with their new manager.

In his first game, an eye-catching 3-0 win over Peru, the scoreline is a bit deceiving for Colombia. With an xG (expected goal) tally of only 0.75, Colombia relied on some individual errors from Peru.

As for their following and most recent game, a 2-2 draw with Argentina, Colombia needed to claw back from a 2-0 deficit and were able to walk away with a tie thanks to an equalizer in the 94th minute.

In both games, Colombia were also outshot by their opponents.

It might seem like nitpicking, especially when the sample size is so small, but it’s important to remember that Rueda’s undefeated start might not be as near-perfect as it appears.

Ecuador Could Cause A Surprising Amount Of Trouble

As for Ecuador, as mentioned earlier, they have been able to catch some rivals off-guard.

They’ve thrived in World Cup qualifiers, and regardless of their two latest losses, they’re only three points behind Argentina in Conmebol’s table.

And yet, they are also only three points ahead of 7th in that same World Cup qualifying table.

There’s a certain level of erraticism with them.

Ecuador are capable of getting significant wins, like the 6-1 result last November against Colombia, but have also stumbled against less-than-exciting squads such as Peru earlier this month.

Colombia Should Be Able To Keep Game Level

If we were being pessimistic about Colombia earlier, it’s also fair to also take a more optimistic lens to balance things out.

The good news? There’s a new vigor and fight from Colombia since Rueda stepped in as leader.

Colombia outperformed their xG in their win against Peru on June 4th, and after letting Argentina take a 2-0 lead a week later, they had the motivation and conviction to force a 2-2 draw.

There’s much that needs to be fixed about Colombia in order to thrive in both the Copa America and World Cup qualifying, but at the very least, they’ll be competitive in the near future.

A win might be out of reach, but a draw could be in the works.