Canada vs. Chile: Copa America Betting Odds

A late strike by Jonathan David gave Canada their first win at the Copa America on Tuesday and they now sit second in Group A with three points. A win against Chile on Saturday night in Orlando guarantees the Canadians a spot in the quarter-finals, while a draw may also get them through to the knockout round.

Chile is tied with Peru for last in Group A with a draw and a loss each, so this is a must-win match to stay alive.

Chile opened as +110 favourites to win on the Copa America odds, while a draw is +220 and Canada is +270.

Canada vs. Chile Betting Odds

These teams have previously met four times, with Canada recording a win, a draw and two losses. They haven’t met since a 1995 friendly, with home side Chile winning 2-0. This is Canada’s first appearance in the Copa America, so they have no tournament history. Chile won the Copa back-to-back years in 2015 and 2016, while they made it to the quarter-finals last tournament.

Canada, ranked No. 48 in the world, have climbed to +6600 to win the tournament on the Copa America futures board after sitting at +8000 prior to the Peru match. The Canadians are also now favoured to qualify from the group at -145. The 40th ranked Chileans are just ahead of Canada at +5000 to win the Copa, but they trail Canada at +120 to qualify. Canada is +1200 to reach the final and Chile is +1000.

We called Jonathan David to be an anytime goalscorer and Canada to win 1-0 against Peru (good for us), so we’ll go back to the well and pull up another match prop. Chile has been snakebitten in the tournament and they’re bound to score, but Canada’s offence should also continue, so our prop of the match is both teams to score in regular time at +100.

Canada

Canada has impressed through two matches. They held their own in a 2-0 loss against the No. 1 ranked team in the world, Argentina, in Atlanta and they earned a 1-0 win against Peru in Kansas City despite some arguably dirty tackles. One of those tackles resulted in a red card and Canada took advantage of the shorthanded Peruvians, with Jonathan David scoring the eventual winner in the 74th minute. Canada is now in a great spot to qualify. A win guarantees a quarter-final spot, while a draw also sends Canada to the knockout round as long as Argentina doesn’t lose against Peru.

Keep in mind, however, a loss against Chile eliminates Canada from the tournament and Argentina already qualified, so they may give more rest to their starters against Peru. Still, Canada is riding high on momentum after their first win in four matches under new coach Jesse Marsch. The game plan will likely be the same against Chile, with David and Cyle Larin pressing up front and serving as the first line of defence.

If Les Rouges does make a chance to the lineup, Nova Scotia winger Jacob Shaffelburg could draw into the starting XI. Shaffelburg has driven the pace for Canada coming off the bench in the first two matches and he had a great assist to set up David’s winning goal against Peru.

Chile

It’s been a disappointing first two matches for Chile, who settled for a 0-0 draw in the tournament opener against Peru and lost 1-0 against Argentina. Assuming Peru loses to Argentina, Chile needs to beat Canada to advance to the knockout round. Things get complicated if Chile and Peru both win. They are currently tied in the first six tiebreakers, so if they each win their final group stage match by the same score, it would come down to fewest red cards, which currently favours Chile.

La Roja have suddenly found the goalscoring well dry up after they scored eight goals in the three matches before the Copa America. Age could be catching up to the lineup as several players are over the age of 30, including 35-year-old forward Alexis Sanchez and 34-year-old forward Eduard Vargas. The 41-year-old goalkeeper Claudio Bravo has largely kept Chile in the tournament as they have just four shots on target in their first two matches.

If manager Ricardo Gareca decides to replace Sanchez or Vargas in the starting XI, he could turn to Ben Brereton, who plays for La Liga club Villarreal. The 25-year-old has seven goals in 32 career matches for the national team.