#2 Carlos Bacca should have started
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Colombia head-coach Jose Pekerman started the inexperienced Roger Martinez in the attack in a 4-5-1 formation ahead of the much potent and effective Carlos Bacca in a very mysterious decision that backfired eventually.
The 22-year-old Racing Club forward barely settled in the game and the unfavourable turf conditions in the second half made his life worse. With James Rodriguez and Juan Cuadrado pulling the strings in the attack, Martinez cut more of an isloated figure upfront, failing to have any sort of impact and was overshadowed completely when Bacca came on for Cuadrado for the final 10 minutes.
The former Sevilla man is proven quantity upfront and came into the tournament on the back of an encouraging debut season in Serie A. The 29-year-old was more mobile and threatening in the 10 minutes awarded to him than what Martinez was in the entirety of 90 minutes. Bacca conjured a few shots at goal and put up crosses otherwise.
Starting Bacca would’ve held Colombia in a good stead and probably made them more potent in the attack right from the start, but Pekerman is now left to rue what might have been.
