Uruguay defeated Brazil 4-2 in a penalty shootout to secure a place in the Copa America semi-finals after a goalless match on Saturday.

The intense quarter-final, held in a city better known for boxing, was marked by a lack of quality play and a tournament-high 41 fouls.

The match took a turn in the 74th minute when Uruguay was reduced to 10 men following Nahitan Nandez’s red card.

Despite the setback, Uruguay held firm and eventually triumphed in the penalty shootout.

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Uruguay will now face Colombia in the semi-finals on Wednesday in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Colombia, unbeaten in their last 27 games, advanced after a commanding 5-0 victory over Panama in Arizona.

The other semi-final will take place in New Jersey on Tuesday, where world champions Argentina will go up against the tournament’s surprise package, Canada.

For Brazil, the five-time world champions, this early exit from the tournament was a significant disappointment.

The team struggled to find their rhythm under coach Dorival Junior, highlighting the work needed to prepare for the 2026 World Cup.

The best chance in the match came in the 35th minute when Uruguay’s Darwin Nunez mis-timed a header from close range.

Moments later, Brazil’s Raphinha had a clear opportunity, but Uruguay goalkeeper Sergio Rochet made a crucial save to keep the match level.

Marcelo Bielsa’s Uruguay displayed their usual tenacity, disrupting Brazil’s midfield and frequently interrupting their play with fouls.

Brazil often resorted to long balls forward, but with only 17-year-old Endrick, replacing the suspended Vinicius Junior, as their central striker, they lacked the physical presence to make this tactic effective.

As the game progressed, it deteriorated with numerous fouls, exacerbated by lenient refereeing.

Uruguay’s strategy of wearing Brazil down suffered a setback when Nandez was sent off following a dangerous slide into Rodrygo’s ankle, confirmed by a VAR review.

Italian Serie A side Lazio has finalized the signing of Nigerian midfielder Fisayo Dele-Bashiru on a season-long loan from Turkish club Hatayspor.

The deal includes an option for Lazio to make the transfer permanent next summer, with an initial payment of €2 million to Hatayspor and an additional €4 million required for the permanent transfer.

Recall that Dele-Bashiru, 23 years old, moved to Hatayspor from Sheffield Wednesday last summer and contributed six assists in 39 appearances across all competitions during his tenure in Turkey.

In an official statement, Lazio confirmed, “SS Lazio announces that it has acquired temporarily with an obligation to buy the rights to the sporting performances of the footballer Oluwafisayo Faruq Dele-Bashiru from Atakaş Hatayspor FK.”

Meanwhile, Nigerian forward Musiliu Odekunle has transferred from Nigerian lower-league club FC Ebedei to Danish Superliga outfit FC Midtjylland.

READ MORE: Ilechukwu Hails GTI’s Strategic Impact On NPFL

The 18-year-old will initially join FC Midtjylland’s youth setup to further develop his skills with aspirations to progress to the senior team in the future.

Upon joining FC Midtjylland, Odekunle expressed his ambitions, stating, “I am eager to grow as a player and enhance my skills. My objective is to continually improve as a footballer. I am excited about developing in the excellent environment at FC Midtjylland.”

Enugu Rangers gaffer, Fidelis Ilechukwu has commended the strategic impact of GTI Group’s initiative towards the restructuring of the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL).

This commendation comes on the heels of the successful completion of the 2023/2024 season.

The highly respected and fast-rising soccer tactician revealed this while speaking to GTI Head of Media Publicity, Andrew Ekejiuba, at New Jos Stadium shortly after their Match Day 38 tie in which his team defeated Gombe United 2-1 in the final match of the NPFL 2023/2024 season. Following the victory, the Flying Antelopes amassed a total of 70 points and were crowned as NPFL champions.

READ ALSO: NPFL Stages AGM In Lagos From July 15-16

The soccer battle was graced by an appreciative capacity crowd of fans at the venue that had the governors of Enugu, Peter Mbah and that of Plateau State, Barr. Caleb Mutfwang in attendance.

Ilechukwu who was full of praise for GTI said the efforts of the financial investment firm and its emergence in Nigeria’s football ecosystem is already yielding the desired results.

“The strategic impact of GTI on the NPFL in the past two seasons they came on board is commendable and top notch. In the just concluded 2023/2024 NPFL season for example, GTI did creditably well because having our games streamed and beamed live globally is a great initiative by the company,” he said.

However, having been officially crowned champions of the 2023/2024 NPFL season, Rangers received a whooping sum of one hundred-and-fifty-million-naira (N150m) prize money from the NPFL which might have elicited Ilechukwu to take the stance.

He further confirmed that all hands are on deck beginning from the coaching crew to the entire management of the team to ensure they have a successful outing at next season’s CAF Champions League in which Rangers will be flying the flag of the country at the continental level.

“We have started preparations and looking out on how to get more quality players into the team to fortify our squad as we build up for our continental engagements next season.

“It is very important we fortify our present squad because we know what it entails to play and challenge for trophies at the continental level. Frankly, we are preparing very well regarding this and we are optimistic that we are going to do well and make Nigeria proud at the continent,” Ilechukwu concluded.