CONMEBOL World Cup 2018 Qualifying Results: Tuesday Scores and Group Tables
South America's World Cup qualifying continued on Tuesday with some fantastic matchups on tap, as several of the world's top sides prepared to do battle.
Below, we'll take a look at the day's results, along with the updated standings and game recaps from all of Tuesday's action in South America.
Tuesday Results
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| 3:30 p.m. ET | Colombia | 0-1 | Argentina |
| 4 p.m. ET | Venezuela | 1-3 | Ecuador |
| 6 p.m. ET | Paraguay | 2-1 | Bolivia |
| 6 p.m. ET | Uruguay | 3-0 | Chile |
| 7 p.m. ET | Brazil | 3-0 | Peru |
Table
| Ecuador | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 12 |
| Uruguay | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 9 |
| Brazil | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| Paraguay | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 |
| Chile | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Argentina | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 5 |
| Colombia | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 4 |
| Bolivia | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 8 | -3 | 3 |
| Peru | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 9 | -5 | 3 |
| Venezuela | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 11 | -7 | 0 |
Argentina 1-0 Colombia
Argentina earned its first win of the qualifying round on Tuesday, getting past a tough Colombian side, 1-0, behind Lucas Biglia's 20th-minute goal. It was a crucial win for an Argentina side that is without its two top players—Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero—due to injury.
Despite Colombia holding 54 percent of possession, outshooting Argentina 12-10 (the Argentines had more shots on goal, 3-2) and earning five corners to just one for Argentina, per ESPN FC, it was Angel Di Maria and company who earned the three points.
Those points were crucial for Argentina after the country took just two points from its first three matches.
"We did not get the result we deserved against Brazil considering we dominated the game,'' manager Gerardo Martino said before the match to Argentine newspaper Ole, via ESPN FC. "We expect a different game against Colombia and we will try to take control. We know the path we are looking for and our position in the standings does not change our approach."
They certainly looked like a team on a mission on Tuesday.
Biglia started the excellent Argentina counter that ultimately led to the goal. Ezequiel Lavezzi did the heavy lifting, however, as it was his cross that beat both the 'keeper and a Colombian defender on its way to Biglia, who was all alone in front of the net and simply had to tap home for the easy goal.
The Colombian defense was a bit suspect on the play, however, failing to clear the cross and completely losing Biglia. Ed Malyon of the Mirror put the blame on defender Cristian Zapata, who completely whiffed on the clearance:
Argentina's next qualifying contest will come against Chile on March 24, while Colombia will look to ramp up its own qualifying efforts the same day against Bolivia.
Ecuador 3-1 Venezuela
Venezuela's odds of reaching their first-ever World Cup grew narrower on Tuesday, as the country was hammered by Ecuador, 3-1.
Venezuela remains winless in qualifying after four matches.
Fidel Martinez and Jefferson Montero struck in the first half while Felipe Caicedo connected in the 60th minute for Ecuador, which have taken all 12 points from their first four matches and remain atop the qualifying table. Josef Martinez scored the lone goal for Venezuela in the 84th minute, though the match was well out of reach by that point.
Paraguay 2-1 Bolivia
Second half goals from Lucas Barrios and Dario Lezcano led Paraguay past Bolivia, 2-1.
The Bolivians took the lead in the 59th minute behind Yasmani Duk, but the Paraguayans responded fiercely, scoring two goals in the game's next seven minutes to earn the crucial victory that vaulted them to fourth place in the region's qualifying.
Uruguay 3-0 Chile
Despite barely possessing the ball at all against visiting Chile, Uruguay managed to prevail with a 3-0 win behind goals from Diego Godin, Alvaro Pereira and Martin Caceres.
Chile held a whopping 73 percent of possession and outshot the home side, 14-10, per ESPN FC, but it was the Uruguayans who made the most of their opportunities.
It was a huge win for the country, as they've had to navigate the early qualifying period without star striker Luis Suarez, who remains suspended.
Brazil 3-0 Peru
Neymar may be one of the hottest players in the world at the moment, but Brazil got help from all over the pitch on Tuesday night, as goals from Douglas Costa, Renato Augusto and Filipe Luis led the effervescent Brazilians to a 3-0 victory over Peru.
The win was a positive one for Brazil, who also earned a draw against Argentina three days ago, and certainly a dominant display as the country continues to climb back up the qualifying table after a rocky start to the competition.
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