Group B. Brazil, Venezuela and Chile played in Cordoba.
Venezuela
1-Cesar Baena (Caracas Fútbol Club)
2-Rene Torres (Estudiantes de Mérida Fútbol Club)
3-Julio Quintero (Portuguesa Fútbol Club -Acarigua)
4-Pedro Acosta (Sport Marítimo -Caracas)
5-Hector Rivas (Sport Marítimo -Caracas)
6-Jose Nieto (Unión Atlético Táchira -San Cristóbal)
7-Franco Rizzi (Sport Marítimo -Caracas)
8-Nelson Carrero (Sport Marítimo -Caracas)
9-Hebert Márquez (Sport Marítimo -Caracas)
10 Carlos Maldonado (Unión Atlético Táchira -San Cristóbal)
11-Wilson Arreaza (Caracas Fútbol Club)
12-Daniel Nikolac (Sport Marítimo -Caracas)
13-Ildemano Fernández (Estudiantes de Mérida Fútbol Club)
14- Iván Isea (Sport Marítimo -Caracas)
15-Zdenko Morovic (Sport Marítimo -Caracas)
16-Pablo Mendoza (Deportivo Italia-Caracas)
17- Robert Ellie (Caracas Fútbol Club)
18-Asdrubal Sánchez (Estudiantes de Mérida Fútbol Club)
19 -Angel Castillo (Deportivo Italia-Caracas)
20-William Méndez (Unión Atlético Táchira -San Cristóbal)
21 -Gerardo Ferrebus (Caracas Fútbol Club)
22 -Rodolfo Carvajal (Estudiantes de Mérida Fútbol Club)
Coach: Rafael Santana (Spain)
The pariahs of South America. Unknown team coached by an European and that was all to be said.
Chile
1- Roberto Antonio Rojas (captain) (Club Social y Deportivo Colo Colo-Santiago)
2- Patricio Reyes (Corporación de Fútbol Profesional Universidad de Chile-Santiago)
3- Ricardo Toro (Club Deportivo Palestino-Santiago)
4-Orlando Hormazábal (Club Social y Deportivo Colo Colo-Santiago)
5- Luis Abdón Roodriguez (Corporación de Fútbol Profesional Universidad de Chile-Santiago)
6-Jaime Pizarro (Club Social y Deportivo Colo Colo-Santiago)
7- Ivo Basay (Corporación Deportiva Everton -Viña del Mar)
8-Eduardo Hernán Gómez (Club de Deportes Cobreloa –Calama)
9-Juan Carlos Letelier (Club de Deportes Cobreloa –Calama)
10-Jorge Contreras (Union Deportivo Las Palmas / Spain)
11-Fernando Astengo (Grêmio Foot-Ball Porto Alegrense / Brazil)
12- Marco Antonio Cornez (Corporación de Fútbol Profesional Universidad de Chile-Santiago)
13-JaimeVera (Club Social y Deportivo Colo Colo-Santiago)
14-Ruben Espinoza (Club Deportivo Universidad Católica-Santiago)
15- Osvaldo Heriberto Hurtado (Club Deportivo Universidad Católica-Santiago)
16-Ivan Zamorano (Club de Deportes Cobresal -El Salvador)
17-Sergio Salgado (Club de Deportes Cobresal -El Salvador)
18-Patricio Mardónez (Club Deportivo Universidad Católica-Santiago)
19-Patricio Martínez (Club Deportivo Universidad Católica-Santiago)
20-Héctor Puebla (Club de Deportes Cobreloa –Calama)
21-Hugo Rubio (Club Social y Deportivo Colo Colo-Santiago)
22- Mario Ignacio Osben (Club de Deportes Cobreloa –Calama)
Coach: Orlando Aravena
Improving squad, but coming out of considerable slump. Ivan Zamorano was in the team – a testimony of new talent, but he was still too young, only a talented reserve and appeared once as a substitute for 10 minutes.
Brazil.
1-‘Carlos’ Roberto Gallo (Sport Club Corinthians Paulista- São Paulo)
2-‘Josimar’ Higinio Pereira (Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas- Rio de Janeiro)
3-’Geraldão’ Dutra Pereira (Cruzeiro Esporte Clube- Belo Horizonte)
4-Ricardo Roberto Barreto da Rocha ‘Ricardo Rocha’ (Guarani Futebol Clube)
5- William Douglas Humia Menezes ‘Douglas’ (Cruzeiro Esporte Clube- Belo Horizonte)
6- Nelson Luis Kerchner ‘Nelsinho’ (São Paulo Futebol Clube- São Paulo)
7- Luís Antônio Corrêa da Costa ‘Müller’ (São Paulo Futebol Clube- São Paulo)
8-‘Raí’ Souza Vieira de Oliveira (Botafogo Futebol Clube- Ribeirão Preto – São Paulo)
9- Antônio de Oliveira Filho ‘Careca’ (Captain) (Societa Sportiva Calcio Napoli / Italy)
10- Carlos Eduardo ‘Edu Marangon’ (Associação Portuguesa de Desportos – São Paulo)
11-’Valdo’ Cândido Filho (Grêmio Foot-Ball Porto Alegrense)
12- José Carlos Da Costa ‘Ze Carlos’ (Clube de Regatas Flamengo- Rio de Janeiro)
13- Jorge de Amorim Campos ‘Jorginho’ (Clube de Regatas Flamengo- Rio de Janeiro)
14- ‘Ricardo’ Raimundo Gomes (Fluminense Football Club- Rio de Janeiro)
15-’Júlio César’ da Silva (Montpellier-Herault Sports Club / France)
16- Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri ‘Dunga’ (Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama – Rio de Janeiro)
17- Eduardo Antonio dos Santos ’Edu Manga’ (Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras- São Paulo)
18- Paulo ‘Silas’ do Prado Pereira (São Paulo Futebol Clube- São Paulo)
19-‘Romário’ de Souza Faria (Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama – Rio de Janeiro)
20- Francisco Ernandi Lima da Silva ’Mirandinha’ (Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras- São Paulo) and recently trasnsfered to Newcastle United Football Club / England)
21- Sergio Donizeti Luiz ‘João Paulo’ (Guarani Futebol Clube)
22- Reginaldo Paes Leme Ferreira ‘Regis’ (Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama – Rio de Janeiro)
Coach: Carlos Alberto Silva
Transitional team, certainly. Carlos Alberto Silva was only provisional coach. The famous veterans were out, replaced by young players, but it was still very early stage of the new cycle. Romario, Dunga, Rai were included, but perhaps Mirandinha was considered the next big star – he was just transferred to Newcastle United. The newcomers were only a potential and since Carlos Alberto was the Olympic team coach, the youngsters seemingly were included largely to test and toughened them for the 1988 Olympic games – the key players of the national team were solid stars like Careca, now made the team captain. However, the new Brazil toured Europe recently and left very positive impression. Naturally, a favourite.
Brazil – Venezuela.
Predictably, Venezuela was no match and Brazil dominated.
The difference of class was too big, no matter what the Venezuelans tried.
Muller either disappointed or there was no need to keep him playing the whole game – Romario replaced him in the 66th minute.
It was just Brazil and at the end the result was 5-0. No Brazilian scored more than one goal, but Careca scored, Romario scored, and even Venezuela scored a goal – unfortunately, Zdenko Morovic contributed to the big loss scoring in his own net.
Chile – Venezuela.
Venezuela was expected to lose and it did. This time they scored in the net of the opposition, not in their own, but that was all. In the 24th minute Pedro Acosta equalized from a penalty and Venezuela preserved the tie until the 70th minute. Then Chile scored its second goal and ten minutes later made it 3-1. Two players were red-carded.
Brazil -Chile.
Brazil was the favourite and at least photos show superiority and artistic one at that.
That seems just right – Brazil scoring. But it is a save…
Photos are misleading – it was not Brazil scoring, but Chile. First Ivo Basay gave Chile the lead and the first half ended with that. In the second half Chile scored 3 more goals – Basay scored his second and Juan Carlos Letelier scored twice as well. Brazil… scored a red card. Nelsinho was out of the match in the 57th minute. It was huge surprise – it was only the second victory of Chile against Brazil in the history of Copa America and the first one was in the long gone 1956. Brazil did not lose a game by 4 goals in Copa America since 1917. There was quite a lot to consider and reconsider about the future of the Brazilian team and in the same time Chile suddenly appeared to be a new mighty jewel. Basay was instant hero and Ivan Zamorano played his 10 minutes in the tournament replacing Basay – Chile looked bigger than they were: consider the cheek – substituting the great star with unknown youngster and that against Brazil!
1. Chile 2 0 0 7-1 4
2. Brazil 1 0 1 5-4 2
3. Venezuela 0 0 2 1-8 0