Copa America Schedule 2016: Live Stream, TV Info, Odds for Tuesday's Group
Copa America Centenario hosts USA will look to rebound from their opening-day loss on Friday against Colombia as they face Group A rivals Costa Rica on Tuesday in Chicago at Soldier Field.
Colombia will take on Paraguay at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, in Tuesday's other match.
Costa Rica and Paraguay played out a scoreless draw on Saturday in their first clash, which is good news for the Stars and Stripes. While the 2-0 loss against the Colombians was a disappointing one, manager Jurgen Klinsmann's troops sit just one point behind their rivals for second place, and a win over Costa Rica would likely put the team in the driver's seat.
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Here's a look at the schedule and odds for Tuesday's contests, courtesy of Oddschecker:
| 8 p.m./1 a.m. (Wednesday) | USA Win: 11-13 | Draw: 5-2 | Costa Rica Win: 9-2 |
| 10:30 p.m./3:30 a.m. (Wednesday) | Colombia win: 5-6 | Draw: 5-2 | Paraguay Win: 9-2 |
Fox Sports will broadcast the matches in the U.S, while Premier Sports will do so for the UK. The action can also be streamed live at Fox Soccer 2GO (U.S.) and FuboTV (Global).
USA vs. Costa Rica
As noted by Sports Illustrated's Brian Straus, history suggests the USA are in trouble after dropping their opener against Colombia. In the past 101 years, the team have failed to advance to the next round of a major tournament after losing their first match on all but one occasion―the 20 times they won or drew, they advanced every time.
The hosts didn't look at all convincing against a solid Colombian squad, a team always expected to dominate Group A. Klinsmann wasn't as disappointed as some of the fans and pundits were, per Straus:
"I mean, we were totally even. We didn’t give them anything. It’s really important for our players to see that they’re absolutely beatable, that they come out of this game and say, ‘O.K., you know what? Give the three points to them. But it’s absolutely no problem going forward to say we play Costa Rica to get three points and we play Paraguay to get three points and then we’re in the quarterfinals.The message overall is positive to the players even though if we’re obviously disappointed we didn’t get any points.
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But while Klinsmann can rightly be proud of the team's general defensive fortitude, the total lack of creativity on display has to be a concern. Paraguay and Costa Rica won't give the Stars and Stripes any more space to work with than Colombia did―in fact, they're more likely to sit even further back.
Costa Rica beat the USA on American soil the last time these two teams met, but Los Ticos haven't looked as dominant since then. The absence of star goalkeeper Keylor Navas is an obvious blow, and without their star stopper, the team seem less willing to venture forward and press up the pitch.
In all likelihood, the onus will be on the USA to create, and fans may see more of Christian Pulisic and Darlington Nagbe, two excellent creative forces who could have turned the tide for the Stars and Stripes against Colombia had they been given more chances.
Colombia vs. Paraguay
Colombia's win over the USA combined with the draw between Paraguay and Costa Rica has put the side in a fantastic position, and the stats indicate they're already almost guaranteed a spot in the next round, per Paul Carr of ESPN Stats & Info:
All is not well for Los Cafeteros, however. Per Sport, manager Jose Pekerman has confirmed James Rodriguez will not be available for his team's second match, with Dayro Moreno expected to take his place.
Rodriguez is the creative heart of this Colombia team, and after his superb showing at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, he has also become Los Cafeteros' on-pitch leader. The Real Madrid man didn't enjoy a great 2015-16 campaign. But his talent is unquestionable, and Rodriguez is capable of deciding matches with a single flash, as evidenced by this video:
Paraguay aren't expected to do much in attack, and ESPN FC's James Tyler was thoroughly underwhelmed when he watched their match against Los Ticos:
They do tend to defend with numbers and aren't easy to break down, and without Rodriguez, Colombia will have to turn to other stars to provide a creative spark.
Los Cafeteros should have the raw talent to put Paraguay away, even without their best creative force, but don't be shocked if they spend a lot of energy hammering away at their opponents' defence.
