Chile vs Peru
South America – 2018 World Cup Qualifier
Date: Wednesday; 12th October 2016,
Kick-off at 0:30 UK
Venue: Estadio Nacional, Santiago de Chile.
Chile
When a team has won back to back Copa America titles they should be gearing up to head to the next World Cup Finals as one of the favourites to win the biggest competition in football. However that has not been the case for Chile who have struggled to produce their best in the World Cup Qualifiers and they are now in a position where they can't let the nations above them get too far ahead.
At the moment Chile are in 7th place in the Qualifying Group and they have earned 11 points so far which leaves them 5 points short of 5th placed Argentina. There is no doubt that Chile want to make some improvements at home where they are 1-2-1 in the Qualifiers as Chile have scored 4 goals and conceded 3.
Since winning the second Copa America in a row in July, Chile have failed to win any of their next 3 World Cup Qualifiers as they have lost in Paraguay and Ecuador and only earned a draw with Bolivia at home. Chile have now failed to win any of their last 3 home World Cup Qualifiers coming off the back of 5 consecutive home Qualifier wins.
Peru
There isn't a lot of hope for Peru to challenge for a top five place in the South American World Cup Qualifying Group, but a surprise win in Santiago de Chile would give them an outside hope. They have shown some improvement in their performances, but Peru have to turn performances into wins if they are going to be a surprise participant in two years time in Russia.
They are down in 8th place in the South American World Cup Qualifying Group and Peru have earned 8 points which leaves them 8 behind the top five places. The struggles for Peru have come away from home where they have a 0-0-4 record in the Qualifiers having failed to score and conceding 8 goals.
Peru are in a good run of form having lost 1 of their last 9 games overall and they earned a credible 2-2 home draw with Argentina a few days ago. They have lost 6 of their last 7 away games though which includes a World Cup Qualifier loss in Bolivia and Peru have lost 24 of their last 25 away World Cup Qualifiers.
Prediction
I really am struggling to determine what is going on with the Chile national team who have shown they are clearly one of the best in South America by winning the Copa America in 2015 and 2016. However they have not been able to produce that level of football in the World Cup Qualifiers and could be in a very bad position if they don't win this week.
Being 5 points behind the top 5 is manageable, but failing to win this game will see that gap increase and the pressure might just be insurmountable for Chile.
This is a good fixture for them having beaten Peru in 11 of their last 12 clashes including in 6 in a row at home. You can't ignore the fact that Peru have been a poor travelling team in South America with 24 losses in their last 25 World Cup Qualifiers and 17 of those losses have come by at least two goals.
Peru have lost all 4 away World Cup Qualifiers in this section to make it 8 straight losses away from home in these games and I think Chile can bounce back from some miserable losses. I think Peru could be a little tired from chasing the ball against Argentina a few days ago and Chile are far better than they have shown in their recent games.
With their dominance at home against Peru in recent games, I am backing Chile to win and cover the Asian Handicap this week.
Chile vs Peru: Head to Head Statistics
These two team have come a long way, they have played 17 times in the past
Chile have won 12 of their previous 17 games against Peru, lost 4 games and drawn just once.
Chile are currently on a winning streak against Peru, they have won their last 3 games against Peru.
The Chilean team have scored at least 2 goals in each of their last 3 games against Peru
Chile vs Peru: Prediction
This two teams are in an Identical form, they have both won 2 of their last 5 games, lost 2 and drawn 1.
Looking at their forms after the Copa America Centenario, Peru are the better side. Peru have won 1, drawn 1 and lost 1. They have scored at least 2 goals in their last 3 games. While Chile are currently win-less, they have lost 2 and drawn 1. They have failed to score in their last 2 games and have conceded at least 2 goals in 2 of their last 3 games.
The current American Champions are poor at the moment and will need to put more effort in this game. The game could go either way, as there are no favourite in this fixture.
Chile vs Peru: Tips
Over 2.5 goals at 1.65
Both teams to score at 1.95.
