Colombia U20 vs Ukraine U20 Predictions

Colombia had to work for their place in the last eight of the Under 20 World Cup. They won on penalties against New Zealand in the last 16, which proved to be a bigger test than anticipated. Now they’re facing off with a Ukraine side who are enjoying a solid tournament after making the trip to Poland. They are now the outsiders, despite cruising through their own clash in the round of 16. Can Colombia live up to their favourites tag on Friday and move into the last four of the World Cup?

Colombia did seem like serious contenders for glory ahead of their meeting with New Zealand. They were looking solid during a tournament which has seen plenty of shocks so far. However, it was the manner of Colombia’s displays which made them a side to watch. That includes their 6-0 hammering of Tahiti and a 2-0 success over hosts Poland in the tournament’s opening game. They’ve got a solid run behind them, but the draw with the Kiwis does go some way to out a spanner in the works.

Ukraine hammered Panama 4-1 in the last 16, which was by far their most convincing victory. The best thing to do in tournament football is to start with wins and then add the performances later. That’s arguably what Ukraine are doing, after they made it out of their group with a game to spare. They head into this clash with an unbeaten record behind them, while the European side are aiming to build on their great success against Panama in this more difficult encounter.

Colombia obviously carry more of a threat than Panama, as they’ve hit nine goals in four matches so far. They worked the keeper during their clash with New Zealand, as they took 13 shots and landed seven of them on target. They’ve only failed to score once in Poland so far, while we’re backing them to work this Ukraine defence in the quarter-finals.

Ukraine head into this clash having scored in eight matches on the bounce. They are coming off their biggest win of the tournament to date, while they’ve seen both teams score in five of their last six clashes. With Colombia impressing going forward, we see goals in this game. We are backing both teams to score in this quarter-final, while we are backing these two to play out a 1-1 draw.