Two nights ago, Chile took on Uruguay, the current Copa America champions, in what proved to be one of the most physical and controversial matches of the tournament.
La roja, who seem to be the favorites to win the tournament at the moment, took complete control of the game from minute one. Chile dominated ball possession (69%) and launched heavy attacks (79) far more than Uruguay (54) could, thus frustrating the sky blues. The celeste's disappointment inevitably lead to clumsy challenges, arguments with the referees, and two red cards in the second half.
The first controversial call came after Cavani gently slapped Jara on the cheek while standing just a few feet from the ref's gaze. The PSG striker, who had already received a yellow for arguing with the sideline referee, was irate and argued that he had been provoked by the Chilean. Televised replays revealed that Jara had poked Cavani in the rear while he whispered who-knows-what in his ear. However, the intentional provocation was not seen by any official and Cavani was sent off.
Uruguay's punishment continued throughout the second half and, with their passing lanes utterly cut off thanks to Chile's fantastic midfield, resorted to counter attacks (22%) and long balls (26%) being continually shot into the path of any available player. Uruguay's tactics did occasionally pay off with a measly three attempts on goal, but, with Barcelona's Claudio Bravo blocking every shot that came his way, the chances Uruguay created were always in vain.
Chile eventually scored in the 81st minute after Isla received the ball from a poor clearance by Muslera. Unfortunately, Uruguay's horror show didn't end there.
In the 88th minute of the match, former Barcelona player, Alexis Sanchez, was fouled by Fucile right in front of the sideline referee. The head official showed the defender a second yellow for his challenge on Sanchez and, as one may have expected, the pitch was transformed into a battlefield.
After several minutes of shoving and arguments, the game was restarted and soon came to an end seconds before the 98th minute.
Chile will now face Peru in the semifinal and are now one step closer to winning their first Copa America title.
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