Copa America 2011: The Main Factors That Led Each Team to Semifinals

The quarterfinals are over and now we have the last four teams of the Copa America. All four quarterfinal matches were underdog wins and the favorites (bar Uruguay) have all been knocked out.

Three out of the four games went to extra-time and two went to penalties. The four quarterfinals have been entertaining to say the least, but the goals weren't as abundant as we had hoped.

The four semifinalists are Peru, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Venezuela. I feel that these countries completely deserve to be in the final four of the tournament.

Still, many of the quarterfinal matches were complete shocks to the world, in both the result and the way in which the match was played.

So, how did each team pull off the win? What was the main factor(s) that led the team to victory? This slideshow will discuss the way each country overcame their quarterfinal opponent to reach the next round. 

Peru: Luck and Resilience

Quarterfinal Opponents: Colombia

Result: 2-0 A.E.T (Lobaton, Vargas) 

Peru were second best for the majority of the match against Colombia but somehow managed to escape with a 2-0 win.

I feel that the Peruvians benefited from luck, including Falcao's penalty miss, Moreno's post shot, and goalkeeper Martinez's costly mistakes. Falcao was far from his best against Peru and he wasn't able to convert any chances (he had a lot of them.

Moreno was great all day long for Colombia but the forwards weren't able to score from his deliveries. His crossbar shot was also unfortunate but it would have been a bizarre goal had it gone in.

I feel that Colombia's real disaster was their goalkeeper. He hadn't conceded a single goal in the Group Stage but made two unforgivable errors that led to two goals by Peru.

Even with all this luck, Peru do deserve a lot of credit for their victory. They weren't the better side for the 120 minutes of play, but they held on for the whole game and fought hard.  

Highlights for This Match: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQvz-_BoVy8&feature=relmfu

Uruguay: Unbelievable Goalkeeping by Muslera

Quarterfinal Opponents: Argentina

Result: 1-1 (5-4 on Penalties) (Perez)

This was the quarterfinal that everyone had their eyes on. Two rival teams meeting with both of them underachieving so far. This match didn't disappoint.

After five minutes, Argentina were behind with Perez scoring. But the hosts were level after 18 minutes through Higuain's goal. After that, Argentina kept pushing their opponents.

But it was the red card that really changed the game.  The goalscorer Perez was sent off and Uruguay had a hard time keeping the game at 1-1.

If it wasn't for Muslera, Argentina would have probably been confortable winners and the game would have ended at 90 minutes.

The Uruguay keeper's save right before the final whistle, from Tevez's freekick and Higuain's follow-up, was absolutely amazing. During extra-time, the Uruguay defense wasn't constantly pressured though with Mascherano also receiving a red card.

It was Muslera's heroics that kept Argentina from scoring. As we know, the goalkeeper than blocked Tevez's penalty to bring Uruguay to the semifinal.

Highlights for Match: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0lr29hXC00&feature=relmfu

Paraguay: Determined Defense

Quarterfinal Opponents: Brazil

Result: 0-0 (2-0 on Penalties)

Paraguay were a rock at the back in the quarterfinal. They didn't even let a goal against them on penalties!

Justo Villar may have had one of the best games of his career, but it was Paraguay's whole defensive effort that won them the game.

Offensively, Los Guaranies were fairly poor. Stikers Valdez, Barrios, and Estigarribia weren't able to convert any of their few chances while Brazil had several of clear cut opportunities.

It's still a mystery to me how Brazil managed not to score a goal in normal or extra time. Paraguay's defense was unbelievably determined to keep their opponents from scoring. From last ditch tackles to headers off the goal-line, their defense was everywhere.

In the end, Paraguay won after one of the funniest penalty shootouts ever.

Highlights for Match: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceZHrBx7Sls&feature=relmfu 

Venezuela: Luck and Efficiency

Quarterfinal Opponents: Chile

Result: 2-1 (Vizcarrondo, Cichero)

After Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia had all been sent home in the first three quarterfinals, Chile looked like the favorites to win the Copa America.

But only if they could avoid being upset by Venezuela.

As we know, Venezuela went through. There's no doubting that they had lots of good fortune over the 90 minutes. Chile, mainly in the second half, were attacking constantly and hit the crossbar a few times. There were also some off-the-line clearances by the Venezuelan defenders. 

But luck wasn't the only big factor that enabled Venezuela to pull off the win. La Vinotinto were extremely effective attacking wise. They barely had any chances over the course of the match but managed to score two goals.

It just shows that efficiency is more important than quantity (at least in the knockout stages). 

Highlights for Match: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3iHJqrmyc4&feature=relmfu