Group D

Schedule:  Panama (6/6, Camping World Stadium Orlando, FL), Chile (6/10, Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, MA), and Argentina (6/14, CenturyLink Field, Seattle, WA)

Head Coach: Julio Cesar Baldivieso

Best previous finish in Copa America: Champions (1963)

Players to keep an eye on:  GK Romel Quinonez (Sport Boys), DEF Edward Zenteno (Bolivar), MID Jhasmani Campos (Kazma), FWD Juan Carlos Arce (The Strongest), and FWD Yasmani Duk (New York Cosmos)

Outlook: The minnowest of minnows at this year’s tournament Bolivia enters this tournament looking not just for a couple of wins but also a plan. Things have been very difficult recently for Bolivia with the team winning just one match out of their past ten (1-9-0, 3 points).

If Bolivia are to achieve anything in this tournament it will be through drawing out matches and picking their opportunities on the counter-attack. Bolivia did make it to the Quarterfinals of last year’s Copa America primarily through a stout defensive effort. The team pipped out a late win against Ecuador and secured a 0-0 draw against Mexico to push through to the Quarterfinals. Defender Edward Zenteno was the architect of that run and will be called again to put a stop to the likes of Lionel Messi and Alexis Sanchez.

Since their 3-2 victory over Ecuador at last year’s Copa Bolivia has struggled to score and it is difficult to see that stopping anytime soon. Arce has become a prodigious scorer for his club Bolivar but has yet to really find his form for the national team (8 goals in 49 matches). Bolivia also struggles to score away from home and away from altitude, netting just six goals on the road over the past two years.

It is difficult to see how this team will advance past the likes of Argentina and Panama in this group. With critical World Cup Qualifiers coming up in October it would seem that Baldivieso should use this tournament as a chance to assess talent and give younger players minutes.

Interesting Fact: Bolivians celebrate a festival called Tinku where people beat each other for 2-3 days straight. Tinku, which means violent encounter, usually takes place among different villages and can involve fists, stones, and other weapons.