Bolivia Secures Playoff Spot Contention with Tense Victory Against Chile

Bolivia clung to their slim chances of qualifying for the FIFA World Cup finals for the first time since 1994, securing a 2-0 victory against bottom-placed Chile in CONMEBOL qualifying.

Under the guidance of Oscar Villegas, Bolivia made an ideal start when Miguelito scored his sixth goal in the last eight World Cup qualifiers. A cross from Diego Medina set him up beautifully, and with a deft first touch, he evaded Benjamín Kuscevic, finding space to slot the ball into the top corner from six yards out at the Estadio Municipal de El Alto.

Chile’s captain, Alexis Sanchez, attempted to respond, but it was Bolivia who came closest to adding to their tally in the 13th minute. Diego Arroyo met a corner with a towering header, which rattled off the post and bar, denying the home side a second goal.

Despite their positive start, Bolivia’s momentum was temporarily halted when Lucas Chávez received a yellow card for a reckless high boot to Fabián Hormazábal. VAR intervened, upgrading his punishment to a red card.

Yet, Chile failed to exploit this advantage, with both Gabriel Villamíl and Rodrigo Echeverría having their efforts well blocked as the first half drew to a close. Any momentum the visitors had was truly snuffed out ten minutes into the second half when Uruguayan referee Esteban Ostojich equalised the player count again.

Substitute Francisco Sierralta, who came on at half-time, received a straight red card for a reckless lunge on Robson Matheus, further compounding Chile’s woes.

Brayan Cortes, Chile’s goalkeeper, almost let the situation escalate after fumbling the resulting free-kick, but managed to recover in time to prevent a Bolivia player from taking advantage.

Bolivia continued to threaten, and in the 65th minute, they moved the ball to Roberto Fernandez on the left. However, he seemed caught in two minds and ended up sending a weak pass into the arms of Cortés when he had options in the middle.

Victor Davila, another half-time substitute, posed problems for the Bolivian defence but was repeatedly thwarted, summing up his team’s struggles in the thin air of El Alto.

In stoppage time, the final hopes for Chile vanished as substitute Enzo Monteiro capitalised on a mistake by Cortés, who spilled Miguelito’s shot, allowing Monteiro to bundle the ball home.

This win sees Bolivia just one point behind Venezuela, who hold the crucial Intercontinental playoff spot ahead of their upcoming match against Uruguay. For Ricardo Gareca’s Chile, the defeat guarantees that they will miss their third consecutive World Cup.