Peru will play Venezuela on Thursday night in a big game for both teams at the Copa America 2015 tournament. A win for Venezuela should see them claim a place in the next round of the competition, where as another loss for Peru would see them eliminated after just two games. So both teams have a big incentive to go for it tonight. The game has a scheduled start time of 7.30 p.m. ET and takes place from the Estadio Elias Figueroa Brander in Chile. The game can be watched on TV on the beIN Sports network or online through live stream via the link below.
Venezuela find themselves on the cusp of qualifying for the knock out stages after a shock win over Colombia in their opening game. That victory should not be underestimated, especially after seeing Colombia defeat Brazil this week.
That victory for Venezuela means that one more win from their final two games should see them qualify for the knock out stages. But as their final game will be against Brazil, they will see today's game against Peru as their best chance for gaining that win.
A Venezuela win today would not absolutely guarantee them a place in the next round, because if Brazil can win that final game, and Colombia defeat Peru in their final game, then Venezuela, Brazil and Colombia will end the group stage in a three way tie on six points each. That would mean things would go to goal difference.
If Venezuela did finish in third place on six points though they would be almost guaranteed to progress as the top two third placed teams will progress to the quarter finals out of the three groups. However, finishing third would hold its own hazards - they would likely face a much more difficult in the quarter finals - probably Argentina or host nation Chile.
Venezuela goalkeeper Alain Baroja has said, "We had the euphoria of the match against Colombia but now we have to think with a cool head. It was good to start with three points and now we hope to continue scoring."
He added, "We're eager to continue doing our best in every game and go as far as possible in the tournament."
Peru meanwhile will not be easy to topple. They were minutes away from claiming a famous draw against Brazil in their opening game, but were snuffed out with a last minute goal from Douglas Costa to lose 1-2.
In team news, strikers Jefferson Farfan and Claudio Pizarro as well as winger Juan Manuel Vargas are all doubts for today's game, and all are struggling with injuries.
That could see Yordy Reyna drafted into the side to replace Farfan, although reports ahead of the game suggest Bayern Munich's Pizarro, and Vargas will play through the pain.
Today's big Copa America 2015 game between Venezuela and Peru has a scheduled start time of 7.30 p.m. ET and can be watched online through live stream by clicking here.
