Venezuela U20 1-1 Uruguay U20: Probably a fair result with Uruguay possibly having a slight edge

A fairly dull game where neither side imposed themselves enough to gain the victory.

Venezuela took the lead after 20 minutes; a great run from Yohandry Orozco resulted in him laying the ball off to José Miguel Reyes whose shot from outside the area rolled under the goalkeeper and into the net. A bad mistake.

Uruguay were arguably the better side for the remainder of the half but did not create much and were restricted to long shots by the Venezuela defence. Diego Polenta came closest with his notable effort. A quiet first half ended with the score at one nil.

Uruguay continued to threaten intermittently in the second half; Adrián Luna went close to scoring with a well-struck free kick. A few minutes later they got the equaliser through Federico Rodríguez who coolly beat the goalkeeper with a side footed shot into the bottom left hand corner. The assist came from Camilo Mayada.

As the game neared its end Uruguay remained slightly the better side, however Venezuela were not without attacks of their own; Orozco and Reyes regularly combined nicely to give the Uruguayan defenders something to think about.

Whilst Uruguay may feel a little disappointed not to have won the game, Venezuela defended well and will be pleased with a point in their first game of the tournament.

Notable performances / players to watch next time

Venezuela

Yohandry Orozco (Zulia): He is Venezuela’s best player and whilst not excelling in this game, he did show flashes of his ability and will be watched closely throughout the tournament.

José Miguel Reyes (Carabobo): Combined well with Orozco on several occasions and looked promising on the ball. Got his name on the score sheet with a lucky goal.

Uruguay

Diego Polenta (Genoa): Definitely man of the match. He defended very well indeed, looked so comfortable running with the ball and playing out from the back and rarely if ever gave the ball away. A fine performance.

Federico Rodriguez (Peñarol): A cool, calm finish for his goal and he won a penalty in the opening game against Argentina. Keep an eye on him.