The beauty of the Chile side that won the 2015 Copa America is that it won the tournament with relatively few stars. Apart from Alexis Sanchez of Arsenal, Arturo Vidal of Bayern Munich and Claudio Bravo of Barcelona, the majority of the Chilean side is made up of good-but-not-great players that have placed team cohesion above all else in their quest for glory.
However, with manager Jorge Sampaoli having left the national side, Juan Antonio Pizzi opted for a few changes when he named his lineup, with the most notable omission being playmaker Jorge Valdivia. Here are the 23 men from which he will pick his final 11:
GOALKEEPERS (3): Claudio Bravo (Barcelona, ESP), Johnny Herrera (Universidad de Chile, CHI), Christopher Toselli (Universidad Católica, CHI) DEFENDERS (7): Jean Beausejour (Colo-Colo, CHI), José Pedro Fuenzalida (Universidad Católica, CHI), Mauricio Isla (Marseille, FRA), Gonzalo Jara (Universidad de Chile, CHI), Gary Medel (Inter Milan, ITA), Eugenio Mena (São Paulo, BRA), Enzo Roco (Espanyol, ESP)MIDFIELDERS (7): Charles Aránguiz (Bayer Leverkusen, GER), Marcelo Díaz (Celta de Vigo, ESP), Matías Fernández (Fiorentina, ITA), Pedro Pablo Hernández (Celta de Vigo, ESP), Arturo Vidal (Bayern Munich, GER), Erick Pulgar (Bologna, ITA), Francisco Silva (Chiapas, MEX)FORWARDS (6): Nicolás Castillo (Universidad Católica, CHI), Fabián Orellana (Celta de Vigo, ESP), Mauricio Pinilla (Atalanta, ITA), Edson Puch (LDU Quito, ECU), Alexis Sánchez (Arsenal, ENG), Eduardo Vargas (Hoffenheim, GER)
Goalkeeper: Claudio Bravo
When it comes to goalkeepers, Pizzi is faced with an easy choice – Claudio Bravo is Chile’s beating heart, and the Barcelona custodian is quite possibly one of the first names on the team-sheet. The 33-year-old recently celebrated becoming Chile's most experienced player of all time, notching up 100 appearances with an appearance against Argentina.
Bravo enjoyed a fantastic 2015, becoming the only player to win seven major trophies, but has seen his form taper off in the latter half of the season. Despite that, Bravo is still considered among the best goalkeepers of the 2015/16 season, although he has faced some questions regarding his penchant to punch long range strikes back into dangerous areas.
However, Bravo will get the nod ahead of Johnny Herrera and Christopher Toselli, despite the latter starting for Chile in a 1-0 loss against Mexico a few days back. The backup pair have totalled 19 appearances for Chile between them, thus making Bravo an obvious pick in goal.
The veteran custodian’s penalty save against Ever Banega that won Chile the 2015 Copa America is one that Pizzi hopes to call upon again, were the situation to arise in a tournament that will eschew extra-time in the knockout stages.
Defenders
At first glance, the squad named by Juan Antonio Pizzi seems rather light on central defenders, which is a far cry from the centre-back laden sides that Marcelo Bielsa used to put out in his 3-5-2 system. There are only 3 centre-backs among the seven defenders named in the Chilean Copa America squad, but Marcelo Diaz can also play in that position in an emergency.
Of the three, Gonzalo Jara and Gary Medel are nailed down to be the first-choice pairing, having made the positions their own over the last couple of years. Jara’s ‘aggressive’ style of play is a mirror to Medel’s tigerish performances for Inter Milan this season but are somewhat antithetical to the cautious style that Pizzi tends to favour – a contrast from the high pressing encouraged under Jorge Sampaoli.
Thus, Enzo Roco, a far more traditional centre-back, standing at 6 feet 3 inches tall, might seem more suited to Pizzi’s system, even performing well in their most recent friendly against Mexico. Erick Pulgar, named in the midfielder’s section of the squad, is a youngster that primarily plays as a centre-back for Bologna and could also provide an alternate option for Pizzi.
Mauricio Isla will definitely occupy the right-back role, with his fantastic overlapping runs down the wing being one of the major reasons why Chile won the Copa America in 2015. Isla hasn’t been ever-present for Marseille this season, but 2 goals in 2 assists in 38 games for the French side should be good enough for Pizzi, given that the ageing Fuenzalida might not be the best choice for the role.
Chile have a great balance of options at left back, with Eugenio Mena being the better defensive option, and probably the one that Pizzi will opt for. However, Mena’s hopping around teams in the Brazilian league hasn’t seen him perform with any regularity, which might open the door for Jean Beausejour – who is more of a wing-back and might be the better choice against the ‘smaller’ nations that Chile come up against.
Midfielders
It’s easy to imagine the smile that breaks across Pizzi’s face as he selects the midfielders for his starting lineup. Chile are blessed with a number of central midfield options and have barely been affected by midfield legend David Pizarro retiring from international football.
The defensive midfield role ought to be occupied by the experienced Marcelo Diaz, who has shone for Celta Vigo after joining them in January as a replacement for Augusto Fernandez, propelling the club to a finish in the European places. Francisco Silva and Erick Bulgar, both also comfortable in the centre-back roles, can provide alternate options in this role for Pizzi.
Chile’s bonafide superstar, Arturo Vidal, is a shoe-in for the box-to-box role, having scored 7 goals and assisted 12 in 48 appearances for Bayern Munich. However, with Pizzi favouring a midfield three without a proper central attacking midfielder, Vidal might be left free to push higher up the pitch and assist the attack, much like he did in the 2015 Copa America.
Charles Aranguiz suffered a terrible blow to his career moments after he signed for Bayer Leverkusen last summer, spending most of the season out with an Achilles injury. However, the Chilean returned to the Germans’ lineup in April and ended the season in style with a couple of goals. Thus, he should be fresh enough to star for Chile and function as their primary playmaker in midfield, even though he prefers to sit deep and conduct play, much like Pablo Hernandez.
Matias Fernandes is a fantastic attacking option from the bench if Pizzi’s Chilean side are chasing the game, although Orellana could also play in the attacking midfield role.
Forwards
For all of Chile’s midfield quality, it will mean little if there is a dearth of guile in their attack. Fortunately, that's not the case - Pizzi can count on the fantastic talents of Arsenal superstar Alexis Sanchez, although the fact that fatigue has prevented Sanchez from enjoying another superlative season with the Gunners might temper Pizzi's enthusiasm.
The former Barcelona star might not be used in the no.9 role since Chile have other striking options in the ageing Mauricio Pinilla and the youthful talents of Nicolas Castillo, who can be a wildcard from the bench for Pizzi. Thus, Sanchez might operate in his favoured left-wing role, although he might be given free reign to swap positions, given his undoubted calibre.
Eduardo Vargas hasn’t enjoyed the best of seasons for Hoffenheim in Germany, only scoring 2 goals and assisting 5 in 24 appearances for the Bundesliga side this season, although that hasn’t been a stumbling block for the Chilean striker before, since he tends to shine for his country, who make the best use of his pace and power up front, in addition to his combining well with Sanchez.
Edson Puch also provides an option from the bench on the wings, although Pizzi might be reluctant to use the 30-year-old, and might prefer to start Castillo there.
The right wing ought to probably be occupied by Fabian Orellano, who has enjoyed a stellar season for Celta Vigo, scoring 7 goals and assisting 10 goals in 38 appearances for the La Liga side.
Formations
Pizzi favours a 4-3-3, but since the three occupants of the midfield and the same number in attack share similar qualities, expect to see a lot of players swapping positions in this hard-working side.
Pizzi might also be tempted to use Bielsa / Sampaoli’s 3-5-2 system, which can suit Chile’s players, with Matias Fernandes likely to get a look in, with Diaz dropping to centre-back.
Whatever the formation Pizzi goes with, what is a certainty is that Chile will make a good fist of their title defence that will start with a blockbuster match against Argentina on the 7th of June.
