Sports Mole previews Tuesday's World Cup Qualifying - South America clash between Chile and Uruguay, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Uruguay will wrap up their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign when they travel to Santiago for Tuesday's clash with Chile.
La Celeste have secured their spot at next year's tournament, but Chile have missed out following a disappointing campaign.
Match preview
Chile's national team is going through a difficult period, having failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup.
La Roja are languishing at the foot of the standings after winning two, drawing four and losing 11 of their 17 qualifiers.
Chile are also without a permanent manager after Ricardo Gareca left his post in June, following a disappointing return of four wins, four draws and nine defeats in his 17 matches in charge.
Nicolas Cordova has stepped up from his role as Chile's under-20 boss to take over the reins on a temporary basis, but the interim boss was unable to spark an upturn in fortunes in Thursday's difficult away clash against Brazil.
Estevao, Lucas Paqueta and Bruno Guimaraes all got on the scoresheet to condemn Chile to a heavy 3-0 defeat, representing their eighth defeat in nine away qualifiers.
La Roja will at least have home advantage for Tuesday's contest, but their hopes of claiming their first competitive win of the year will be tempered by the fact that they have failed to score in any of their last five matches.
Uruguay secured their place at a fifth consecutive World Cup with a comfortable victory in Thursday's home meeting with Peru.
Roberto Aguirre gave Uruguay a slender lead at the break, before Giorgian de Arrascaeta and Federico Vinas grabbed a goal apiece in the second period to seal all three points and automatic qualification.
As a result, Uruguay only have position to play for in their final qualifier against Chile, with Marcelo Bielsa's side sitting in third place after winning seven, drawing six and losing four of their 17 matches.
La Celeste have found wins hard to come by on their travels, having won just one of their eight away games in 2026 World Cup qualifying (D4, L3).
That solitary away victory took place in November 2023 when they claimed an impressive 2-0 victory over Argentina in Buenos Aires.
Uruguay will take confidence from the fact that they have won four of their previous five matches against Chile, including a 3-1 home victory in the reverse fixture in September 2023.
Chile World Cup Qualifying - South America form:
W L D L L L
Chile form (all competitions):
W L D L L L
Uruguay World Cup Qualifying - South America form:
D L D L W W
Team News
As for the visitors, they are unable to call upon defender Benjamin Kuscevic and midfielder Dario Osorio due to injury.
Swansea City goalkeeper Lawrence Vigouroux will be hoping to return to his place after making his international debut on Thursday.
At the opposite end of the pitch, Gonzalo Tapia is pushing for a starting opportunity after coming off the bench to play over half an hour against Brazil.
Ronald Araujo and Nahitan Nandez could come into the starting lineup after missing the win over Peru through suspension.
Former Liverpool forward Darwin Nunez could be given the chance to start, having completed a five-match suspension for his involvement in an altercation with fans following Uruguay's Copa America semi-final defeat in July 2024.
Meanwhile, defender Mathias Olivera will drop out of the squad after picking up a one-game ban due to an accumulation of yellow cards.
Chile possible starting lineup:
Vigouroux; Diaz, Marzipan, Roman; Hormazabal, Loyola, Pizarro, Suazo; Cepeda, Aravena, Tapia
Uruguay possible starting lineup:
Rochet; Nandez, Araujo, Caceres, Piquerez; Valverde, Bentancur, De Arrascaeta; Pellistri, Rodriguez, Nunez
We say: Chile 0-2 Uruguay
The two sides have experienced contrasting fortunes in recent times, and considering Uruguay have won their last two matches without conceding, we think they will produce another strong display to round off their qualifying campaign with a victory.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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