This Tuesday, La Roja, led by Ricardo Gareca, returns to action to face Venezuela in the 12th round of the Qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup in Canada, the United States and Mexico. LThe national squad needs to win to continue with the hope of fighting for the playoffs..
Of course, the task seems complicated not only because of the bad moment of the Everybody's Team, but also because of the good performances that Vinotinto has had in recent times that has them dreaming of direct qualification to the World Cup.
And for this clash the team led by Fernando Batista will recover one of its greatest figures in attack. Yeferson Soteldo met against Brazil the date of punishment that had been imposed on him for the accumulation of yellow cards and now has everything ready to meet again with the National Stadiuma venue that received him when the attacker defended the University of Chile.
Soteldo's presence in the Venezuelan team is a constant threat that La Roja already knew up close. In the first round, the left winger became a real headache for the national defense in the 3-0 victory they achieved in Maturín.
In fact, on that occasion, the 27-year-old footballer was in charge of opening the scoring and gave the assist to Salomón Rondón in the second, being applauded by the audience present.
“The team played an incredible game. For me the most important thing was the zero, we were already talking about it with the center backs, that for everything we have we cannot receive goals at home”, he commented at that time, sharing the recognition of the fans with his teammates.
“I needed this more than ever, a lot of things happen, a lot of injuries, but thank God I have overcome it and it is because of him that I am here,” he reflected later.
“I think today was a perfect match. I thank God for having contributed to the selection. We have a very nice atmosphere, and I think it is reflected on the field that it is very difficult to hurt a family that is united. “That was the key to today,” he concluded.
Soteldo's farewell to the University of Chile was not pleasant. Especially after a comment the Venezuelan made in 2019. Through Instagram, a university fan criticized him for the way he played in Brazil, comparing it to how he did it in Chile.
The response of the Vinotinto team was brief: “B”, a comment related to the bad moment the U was going through in the National Tournament, fighting to maintain the category..
A comment that was returned over time when the then Santos player ended up being relegated in 2023 with Soteldo as one of his figures.
“The turns of life. You turned your back and mocked the institution that fed you and today you pay for your arrogance. Sometimes it is better to remain silent, ungrateful“, a fan reproached him at that time.
And in the midst of the fight to avoid relegation there was another conflict, this time with Gary Medel who ended up saving the category together with Vasco da Gama. The locals won 3-1 and at that time Yeferson Soteldo stood on the ball, generating the anger of rivals for considering it a mockery.
This situation caused the immediate reaction of Gary Medel who was confronting the defender Dodo, who was protecting the Venezuelan from the footballers who came to rebuke him, which finally cost Pitbull his expulsion.
Weeks later, when the fall of Santos took place, Medel shot in a live broadcast: “Saints, Saints. Let him get on top of the ball now. Let those idiots get on top of the ball”.
The duel between Chile and Venezuela is scheduled for this Tuesday, November 19, starting at 9:00 p.m.
