Minnesota United head coach Eric Ramsay believes they will bounce back from their recent disappointing run against LA Galaxy on Sunday.

The Loons have not won any of their last six matches in MLS, losing each of the last five on the bounce, and dropped to eighth in the Western Conference.

Minnesota have been without players due to injury and international duty, but with some of those starting to return, Ramsay is hopeful it will be the spark they need to snap their losing streak.

"In the grand scheme of this difficult run that we're on and the circumstances that surround it, there were elements of the last performance where we looked back at our best," Ramsay said.

"I think it's as simple as welcoming players back from injuries and internationals to get us back to the feeling before all of this took place.

"That's a very realistic take on the situation, though we will look back at this period with some real regret and disappointment that we haven't picked up the points we could and should've done."

Meanwhile, the Galaxy's four-game winning streak was ended by Los Angeles FC in Thursday’s El Trafico derby.

Now three points off top spot, having slipped to third, head coach Greg Vanney was left to bemoan LA's failure to create chances at the Rose Bowl.

"I'm not interested in being a possession team for the sake of passing the ball around," Vanney said.

"We need to use possession to put the opposition on their heels to score goals, to bury them and make them feel like we're relentlessly coming at them, not so they can set up and be comfortable and turn us over and go the other way."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

LA Galaxy – Gabriel Pec

Gabriel Pec scored against Los Angeles FC and has now been involved in a goal in five straight appearances, tied for the second-longest active streak in MLS.

The Brazilian is the second Galaxy player this season to record a streak of five games with a goal contribution, after Dejan Joveljic in February-March.

Minnesota United – Bongokuhle Hlongwane

Bongokuhle Hlongwane has recorded a goal and an assist in two consecutive away matches, one of two players (Lionel Messi) to do so in consecutive road games this season.

Only two players in MLS history have a goal and an assist in three straight road games – Junior Agogo in 2000 and Ante Razov in 1999.

MATCH PREDICTION: LA GALAXY WIN

The Galaxy won six of their first eight matches against Minnesota United (drawing two) from the Loons' MLS entry in 2017 through August 2021. Since then, LA have won just one of seven meetings with Minnesota (drawn three, lost three).

The Galaxy's 2-1 defeat to LAFC on Thursday was their fourth loss of the season, and the second against their derby rivals. They have not lost two straight matches since last October, with the second of those defeats coming against Minnesota.

However, Minnesota have lost five straight regular-season matches for the first time in club history.  The Loons had suffered only three defeats in 16 league matches this season prior to this run (won eight, drew five).

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

LA Galaxy – 49.9%

Draw – 25.3%

Minnesota United – 24.8%

Venezuela head coach Fernando Batista has branded their Copa America quarter-final exit as "part of the process" after losing on penalties to Canada.

La Vinotinto enjoyed a perfect group stage, winning all three of their games to top Group B while conceding just one goal.

They fought back to force the shootout on Friday, with Salomon Rondon scoring a stunning long-range effort to cancel out Jacob Shaffelburg's early opener.

However, Wilker Angel missed his spot-kick when it went to sudden death, and Canada, making their tournament debut, went into the semi-finals.

Batista has remained positive though, saying his team will use this tournament as a springboard to try and qualify for the World Cup for the first time in their history.

"This is a long process," Batista said.

"We have a huge dream that we're going for. All Venezuelans want to qualify for the World Cup.

"And the Copa America gave us a possibility of strengthening our squad."

Luis de la Fuente hailed his Spain side as an "example for the country" after their last-gasp win over hosts Germany in the Euro 2024 quarter-final.

La Roja came out on top with a 2-1 victory in Stuttgart thanks to Mikel Merino's 119th-minute winner in extra time on Friday.

Dani Olmo had given Spain the lead in the second half, and looked to have scored the match-winner until Florian Wirtz equalised at the end of normal time.

After their last-gasp win, De la Fuente was full of praise for the fighting spirit his side showed to get the result.

"I'm proud of this group of players, such a committed group of players, who are an example for our country, for our society, and for any sportsmen and women who want to be competitive and want to improve every day in order to try and be a bit better every day," De la Fuente said.

"Our team has heart, and I know them; they have ambition, and they are eager to be better every day. They never tire of improving, and I am proud to coach them."

Spain and Germany had perhaps been the tournament's standout performers in the first four rounds of matches, and the match lived up to its billing.

De la Fuente's side have now won all five of their matches at Euro 2024 and will play France for a place in the final on Tuesday.

"We will see how far we can get, but I'm really proud of the example that this team is giving out in terms of companionship and values and so on, and this is what I value the most, apart from the quality of my players," he added.

"We are happy, but we know that tomorrow is a different day, and tomorrow it's another game already. So yes, we are happy, but the euphoria is very much under control."

Peter Luccin was thrilled with FC Dallas' comeback against the Portland Timbers, but still sees plenty of ways they can improve.

Dallas came out on top from a topsy-turvy match in midweek, winning 3-2.

It saw Dallas bounce back from successive defeats, and they sit 11th in the Western Conference ahead of Sunday's clash with Sporting Kansas City, who are six points behind in 13th.

Asked what he liked about his team's performance against the Timbers, Dallas interim boss Luccin said: "Resilience, resilience from the team. That was huge.

"After the first half, we were very passive with nothing offensively. The only thing about the first half that I liked was the compactness of the team. We were compact, but no one making runs, no one even putting more pressure on the ball or playing with the ball. 

"The half-time talk, maybe it's better for me to not say anything. It was a hard talk, but at the same time, we told them to believe.

"We felt that we could score in the second half. The second half we showed character.

"We are in a very hard situation right now in the club and with the team, with so many injuries to very important players."

Petar Musa got on the scoresheet for Dallas to move into double-figures for the season.

"I am happy with my goals but for me, it's not about just the goals," said the striker. 

"We want to win every single game and I want to help the team. I'm more focused on winning every game. So if I score I'm happy, but it's more important that we won."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Sporting Kansas City - Daniel Salloi

Salloi has scored eight goals in 15 career regular-season matches against Dallas, three more than he has scored against any other opponent. Salloi has six goals in his last six matches against Dallas.

FC Dallas - Petar Musa

Musa has scored five goals in his last three matches, taking his total to 10 in his first 20 MLS games for Dallas. The last player to reach 10 goals faster for Dallas was Carlos Ruiz in 2005 (16 games).

MATCH PREDICTION: SKC WIN

Dallas are winless on the road in the 2024 regular season (D3 L7) with its three road points being the fewest in MLS this season. It is the second time the club has been winless through at least 10 away matches of a season as they failed to win any of their first 11 on the road in 2000.

SKC beat Austin FC 2-0 in their last home game. The win ended a streak of 14 straight home regular-season games of SKC conceding, the second-longest such streak in team history (22 straight from June 2002 to October 2003).

The home side has won each of the last four meetings between Kansas City and Dallas in all competitions. There have been at least three goals scored in each of the last six meetings with both teams scoring in all six.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

SKC - 41.3%

Dallas - 32%

Draw - 26.7%

West Ham have completed the signing of Max Kilman from Wolves.

The Hammers paid a reported £40million for the defender, who has signed a seven-year contract with the club.

Wolves initially turned down an offer of £25m but accepted the improved offer for Kilman, who had signed a long-term deal with the club last year.

Kilman is reunited with his former manager, Julen Lopetegui, who made him captain while in charge of Wolves.

"It's an amazing feeling to be a West Ham player," Kilman said.

"As soon as I was aware of the interest from the club, it was an opportunity I was keen to pursue, so I couldn’t be more delighted to be here.

"I really enjoyed working with Julen during his time at Wolves. He's a top-class coach and someone I learned a lot from, and I am confident I will continue to improve as a player under his management here."

The 27-year-old joined Wolves in 2018, making his debut in May 2019. He went on to make 151 appearances in all competitions, scoring three goals.

He becomes Lopetegui's third signing at West Ham, following Brazilian winger Luis Guilherme and goalkeeper Wes Foderingham into the club.

Jesse Marsch has praised Canada for their "willingness" during a "fast learning curve" after they booked a place in the Copa America semi-final.

Les Rouges earned a 4-3 penalty shootout win over Venezuela after Salomon Rondon had cancelled out Jacob Shaffelburg's opener as the match finished 1-1 in normal time.

Maxime Crepeau then saved two penalties before it went to sudden death, and Ismael Kone scored the decisive spot-kick to send them into the next round.

After a poor string of results at the start of Marsch's tenure, Canada were tipped to make an early exit during their maiden Copa America.

However, they have defied the odds, and the American credited the spirit of his squad for pushing them forward.

"All the things that I know about them now, I sensed back then; their commitment, their desire, their willingness to learn," Marsch said.

"All of that has led to bigger belief and self-confidence.

"It's a very athletic team. It's a very fast team. I've tried to build in the right kind of aggression for them to go after opponents, to go after big games and to believe in how we're building this.

"Their commitment to try to learn, their belief in what I'm doing with them is very, very high. They're capable because they're athletic, because they're strong, because they're young.

"We've seen an incredibly fast learning curve, but it's because they're excited about playing this way, and they're excited about what we're trying to achieve together."

Captain Alphonso Davies was one of the players who stepped up during the shoot-out as he picked out the top corner with the penultimate penalty, knowing a miss would have sent them home.

After seeing a tame penalty saved in a defeat against Belgium in the 2022 World Cup, Davies was pleased to replace that memory with something more positive.

"Obviously, I had flashbacks to the World Cup, but I did not let that get to me. I knew where I wanted to go before I walked up to the ball," Davies told Canadian broadcaster TSN.

"It's going to take everything. We played them in the group stage. We played well but didn't get the win we wanted."

Canada will face Argentina in the semi-final at MetLife Stadium on Tuesday, having lost their tournament opener to the Albiceleste 2-0.

England boss Gareth Southgate is proud of reaching 100 games in charge of the Three Lions, but says that statistic means nothing compared to the final result against Switzerland.

Southgate has been in charge of England since 2016 and has led them to a sustained period of relative success.

Having reached the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup, England finished third in the Nations League the following year and then were runners-up at Euro 2020.

A quarter-final exit to France at the 2022 World Cup followed, but England went into Euro 2024 as favourites.

And while they have so far failed to deliver spectacular performances, the Three Lions are just two games away from another final.

"I'm very proud but it is the least important stat of the week," said Southgate.

"The only thing that matters is it is a quarter-final and my complete focus is to get my country into another semi-final.

"I'm sure in years to come I will look back and reflect with great pride. But at the moment it is the last thing on my mind."

Only two other England managers have reached the 100-game landmark; Walter Winterbottom drew his 100th match (3-3 with Northern Ireland in 1958), while Alf Ramsey won his 1-0 against Wales in 1972.

England have won 49 of their 116 matches at major international tournaments, and could be the sixth European nation to reach 50 after Germany, Italy, France, Spain and the Netherlands.

And Southgate knows the pressure is on to deliver.

"It is a fact of life. If you are in one of the most high-profile jobs in world football then there will always be speculation, assessment of what's going on, so I am not worried," he said.

"When I was a younger manager trying to forge a career you are worried about if the first job doesn't go well there won't be another job. So you are worrying about failing and getting the sack.

"Now I am older, I'm 53, I'm not worried about losing or what will go wrong. We have the chance to get into a semi-final. It is a positive thing to focus on. It has been my mindset for quite a while now."

Southgate has won 60 of his previous 99 matches in charge, with 13 of those victories coming at major tournaments.

James Rodriguez says Colombia are not getting ahead of themselves as they prepare to take on minnows Panama in the Copa America quarter-finals.

Panama shocked the hosts United States in the group stage, with that 2-1 win over the Stars and Stripes paving the way for a 3-1 victory over Bolivia, which secured their place in the last eight.

Their reward is a contest against Colombia, who are unbeaten in their last 26 matches and finished top of Group D, ahead of nine-time Copa America winners Brazil.

The Opta supercomputer hands Colombia a 61.6% chance of winning the tie, with Panama's win likelihood only 18.8%, but captain James knows Nestor Lorenzo's team must be focused on the task at hand at State Farm Stadium.

"There's still a lot of work to do, and on Saturday we have to come out and play very focused," said the former Real Madrid star.

"We are going step by step. Panama will be difficult, but we will play with a lot of quality."

James, who turns 33 next week, has been sensational for Colombia at the tournament.

Having been left out of their squad at the last Copa America in 2021, James has provided a tournament-leading three assists, while creating 11 chances overall, level with Lionel Messi.

"I feel comfortable," said James, who has been playing in Brazil after spells in Qatar and Greece following his one-year stint with Everton.

"There is still a long way to go, we still have to play on Saturday, but I feel good. I am going through a good phase here."

Thomas Christiansen believes Panama can rise to the occasion when they face Colombia in the Copa America quarter-finals on Saturday.

Panama are competing in the tournament for the second time, and have already made history after reaching the knockout stages for the first time.

They finished as runners-up in Group C behind Uruguay after wins over the USA and Bolivia, and now face a tough test against Group D winners Colombia, who are on a 26-match unbeaten run in all competitions.

Christiansen admitted he had wanted to be the surprise package before the tournament, and he has now urged his team to take that one step further.

"I don't need to tell [his players] anything," the head coach said.

"They know that they have made history. But we don't want to stop there. We want to try and go a step further, and hopefully, we can do that.

"We're not going to take anything for granted.

"If they [Colombia] want to look down on us, that's their thing. But we are going to take this match very seriously."

Brighton have completed the signing of midfielder Mats Wieffer from Feyenoord.

The 24-year-old has penned a five-year contract, with the Seagulls paying a reported £25.4million (€30m).

Having joined Feyenoord in 2022, Wieffer proved to be a key figure for now-Liverpool boss Arne Slot.

Wieffer played a role in helping Feyenoord win the Eredivisie title in 2023, and then the KNVB Beker last season.

"We’re delighted to welcome Mats to the club, a player whose qualities we have admired for a long time," said Brighton's technical director David Weir.

"He has a lot of experience in the Champions League as well as the Eredivisie and has developed into one of the best deep-lying midfielders in Europe."

Though Wieffer made his Netherlands debut in March last year, he was not called up by Ronald Koeman for Euro 2024.

Wieffer will link up with his former Feyenoord team-mate Yankuba Minteh, who joined Brighton from Newcastle United in a £33m deal last week.

Marcelo Bielsa has urged Uruguay to go out on the front foot when they face Brazil in the Copa America quarter-final on Saturday.

Uruguay topped Group C after winning all three of their games, scoring nine goals and conceding just once.

They come up against a stuttering Brazil side, who only won one of their matches to finish as runners-up behind Colombia in Group D.

Bielsa is determined to keep the team's focus on their own game plan, as they will try to catch Selecao out with their high-pressure approach from the start.

"Normally I focus on the sector of the pitch we play in, how we recover the ball, whether we threaten and how we threaten, and whether the way we build the attack is the style I want the team to play," Bielsa said in a press conference on Friday.

One player Uruguay will not come up against is Vinicius Junior, who has scored twice for Brazil at the tournament, as he is suspended due to an accumulation of yellow cards.

However, the former Leeds United manager, who will be back on the touchline after serving a one-match ban against the USA, believes Brazil have strength in depth that can cause just as many problems as the winger.

"Personally, I don't think [Vinicius'] absence will affect us," Bielsa said.

"Brazil are a country that has a lot of wingers at both ends of the pitch at the moment, and they play in big teams all over the world.

"Brazil's replacement, Endrick, will not be easy to neutralise in Vinicius' absence."

Ismael Kone sent Canada to their first Copa America semi-final as they overcame Venezuela 4-3 in a penalty shootout to edge a classic encounter. 

Jacob Shaffelburg opened the scoring for Canada, only for Salomon Rondon to net a stunning long-range equaliser to take the quarter-final the distance. 

With 32 shots shared between the two sides, penalties would decide who would face Argentina at the MetLife Stadium next week. 

The decisive miss came from Wilker Angel, with Kone's stuttering run up allowing him to coolly slot the ball beyond Rafael Romo to secure the victory. 

Despite the nerves of playing in their first-ever knockout fixture at the Copa America, it was Canada who would strike the decisive blow early on in Texas.

Having seen appeals for a penalty waved away moments earlier, Shaffelburg dusted himself down to open the scoring, squeezing home Jonathan David's cross at the near post in the 13th minute. 

Jesse Marsch's side had opportunities to double their advantage, as Shaffelburg saw his effort saved while David fluffed his lines with only Romo to beat as a pulsating first half came to a close. 

Canada's dominance continued after the break but Cyle Larin was unable to hit the target, and their wastefulness in front of goal was punished spectacularly. 

A long ball up front saw Rondon win a tussle with Moise Bombito, taking aim from just inside the Canada half to lob Maxime Crepeau for a goal of the tournament contender. 

David continued to threaten for Canada, chipping the ball in behind for Tani Oluwaseyi who could only find the roof of the net in the final chance of normal time. 

Both sides would miss two spot-kicks as the encounter reached sudden death, but Angel saw his effort saved by Crepeau, handing the responsibility over to Kone, who clinched a landmark victory for Marsch's side. 

Venezuela's young guns can be proud of their efforts

Fernando Batista can count his team unlucky following their gut-wrenching exit from the tournament, but his young squad can take pride in their performances at the tournament. 

Venezuela battled an onslaught of Canada pressure, but fought back with their own attacking talents, with Rondon's strike their fourth consecutive goal at the Copa America, their longest run of games with a goal in the competition since a run of five games in June 2015. 

However, hopes of reaching a first semi-final since 2011 were dashed. 

Nevertheless, Venezuela can leave the tournament with their heads held high, having equalled their highest goal tally (seven) in a single edition of the tournament. 

Canada through, but must improve in front of goal

Marsch said he wanted to build something special with Canada, and his side's run in the Copa America has been nothing short of sensational. 

Canada started brightly through Shaffelburg's early strike, with all three of his international strikes coming in knockout matches. However, it should have been more. 

From their 16 shots on goal, only seven were on target, with 12 of their efforts coming inside the box. Marsch's side underperformed their expected goals (xG) by 0.84, and had four total big chances compared to Venezuela's 0. 

Despite those underlying statistics, Canada will be hopeful of keeping their fairytale run in the competition alive against Argentina, who they lost to in the group stage of the competition. 

John Herdman insists that Toronto FC’s defeat to Orlando City must be a turning point in their MLS campaign ahead of facing in-form Columbus Crew this weekend.

Toronto had taken an early lead through Derrick Etienne but were compounded to a fifth straight defeat that leaves them in eighth place in the Eastern Conference, two points behind Nashville SC. 

Head coach Herdman acknowledged his side’s poor recent form, and ensured conversations would be had with his players and staff to ensure they return to winning ways sooner, rather than later.

“This has to be a turning point for the club tonight,” Herdman said. “I said that to the players after the game, ‘It has to be the turning point.’

“There's going to be some hard conversations in the next two days starting with all of us looking at ourselves in the mirror for that 20-minute period.

“What happened there? And why is it happening? Why do we fall into that trap game after game after game?”

However, they will have to do so against a Columbus side in a rich vein of form having earned a third straight triumph with their 2-0 win over Nashville last time out.

The Crew currently occupy third place in the Eastern Conference and are one of three sides chasing runaway leaders FC Cincinnati and Inter Miami.

Head coach Wilfried Nancy commended his team’s recent displays and said he intends to do everything possible to keep that feel-good feeling in the camp before welcoming Toronto to the Lower.com Field.

“I'm going to talk about the present moment because it's a fact: They are really good,” Nancy said of his side.

“They are really good. We are going to try to do everything to help them to stay like this because

for me, it's a key point. It's a key point about the way we want to play.”

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Columbus Crew – Cucho Hernandez

There is arguably no one better in the MLS right now than Cucho Hernandez as he kept up his impressive recent form for the Crew.

Since returning from injury, the Colombian has registered six goals and four assists in his last five matches, with his most recent coming in their 2-0 win over Nashville as he set up Christian Ramirez to open the scoring at the Lower.com Field.

Toronto FC – Federico Bernardeschi

Federico Bernardeschi continues to be an attacking force for Toronto, and he will be needed on top form if his side are to halt their current five-game winless run.

The Italian has been involved in 14 goals in his last 10 MLS matches (eight goals, six assists), including an assist against Orlando City last time out.

MATCH PREDICTION: COLUMBUS CREW WIN

Columbus are expected to emerge victorious, with Nancy’s side winning 76.7% of Opta’s data-led simulations heading into the encounter.

The Crew have an impressive home record, losing one of their last 30 home matches in all competitions dating back to May 2023 (W20 D9). In that streak, 12 of those victories have been by a margin of two or more goals.

Columbus also boast an impressive record over their opponents and are unbeaten in their last five league matches against Toronto. Before this run, Columbus had won just two of their previous 14 meetings with Toronto dating back to 2016.

Toronto, however, will be out to cause an upset. Their current five-game losing run is the seventh losing streak of five or more matches since the start of the 2021 season.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Columbus Crew – 76.7%

Draw – 13.9%

Toronto FC – 9.4%

New York Red Bulls head coach Sandro Schwarz believes his side must improve against a ‘tough’ Philadelphia Union side ahead of their encounter at Subaru Park.

The Red Bulls maintained their four-match unbeaten run with a 2-2 draw against DC United last time out, aided by Cristian Dajome’s early dismissal for the visitors.

Schwarz’s side sit fifth in the Eastern Conference and are among a cluster of teams tightly packed in the middle of the division, with every victory important at the halfway stage of the season.

The Red Bulls head coach praised his side’s mentality to gain a point against the Black and Red’s last time out but expects a difficult match against the Union.

“I think what we have to improve, especially with our ball position is the structure which we have lost in some moments which we will analyse ahead of the game,” Schwarz said.

“But the mentality to come back was good to not lose the last game and to get this important point at home. We analysed this and it is very clear how we want to play, and we want to create these situations and these moments.

“They are a very good team with a good structure, they are aggressive in their pressing and have that individual quality as well.

“They have the quality to build-up with the centre-backs and have good deep runs, and it will be a tough game for us.”

For Philadelphia, their winless run continued against fellow strugglers Chicago Fire as they were edged out of a seven-goal and are now without a win since their 3-0 win against New England Revolution back in May.

The Union had led 3-1 entering the final 10 minutes of play before conceding three goals in nine minutes to lose 4-3, marking the first time in the club’s history that they had lost a match in which they led by multiple goals entering the 80th minute.

Their latest defeat was their fifth in a row and leaves them second-bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, level on points with DC United at the foot of the table.

Curtin was left hurt by the loss and highlighted their inability to defend set-pieces as something to work on before facing the Red Bulls.

“The guys did well to get themselves from 3-1 up, from there it was pretty comfortable until about the 82nd minute, and we started conceding corners that we didn’t need to concede,” Curtin said.

“The little things then became big issues. The thing that we have been pretty good at over the years which has been defending set-pieces, we have come up really small and we get punished.

“It hurts, but again, I sound like a broken record, but the group will have to regroup quickly and go again against New York.”

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Philadelphia Union – Daniel Gazdag

Following his return from international duty with Hungary at Euro 2024, Daniel Gazdag found himself on the scoresheet once again in the Union’s 4-3 defeat to Chicago Fire last time out.

Gazdag’s goal and assist at Soldier Field took his tally 12 goal involvements in 17 MLS appearances, and his influence in attack will be needed if Philadelphia are to return to winning ways.

NYRB – Cameron Harper

After scoring in three consecutive MLS matches in May, Cameron Harper has rediscovered his goal-scoring touch for Schwarz’s side.

The American has scored two goals in his last two games against Toronto FC and DC United and should he find the back of the net again, he will become the first player since Bradley Wright-Phillips in 2016 to have multiple streaks of three or more games with a goal in a single season.

MATCH PREDICTION: DRAW

Despite Philadelphia slightly edging Opta’s data-led simulations, their recent form suggests that the encounter at Subaru Park will be an evenly contested affair.

The Union have lost their last five league matches for the first time in the club’s history following a 4-3 defeat to Chicago Fire on Wednesday.

However, Curtin’s side can take confidence from their recent record against their opponents. Philadelphia are unbeaten in their previous 12 meetings with the Red Bulls in all competitions (W8 D4) dating back to 2019.

But New York will take confidence from their 2-2 draw with DC United. It marked the 12th time this season the Red Bulls have scored multiple goals in a match after doing so just eight times during the entire 2023 season.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Philadelphia Union – 38.9%

Draw – 26.5%

NYRB – 34.5%

Dorival Junior confirmed Endrick will earn his first start for Brazil ahead of their Copa America quarter-final with Uruguay. 

Endrick will replace future Real Madrid team-mate Vinicius Junior after the Ballon d'Or hopeful picked up his second yellow card of the tournament against Colombia. 

The teenager, who has scored three goals in nine appearances for the Selecao Canarinha, will join Raphinha and Rodrygo in attack for the fixture at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

"The attack has already been decided. Raphinha, Endrick and Rodrygo. I hope we can continue finding the way to goals," Junior said.

"I think the work focuses on giving athletes the possibility of attacking the opponent's last line. We hope Endrick is very well prepared to deliver on everything we expect from him.

“We lost an important player, but we gained a player who has been emerging, looking for an opportunity. Who knows, this could be Endrick's moment."

Brazil scored five goals in their group fixtures at the tournament, four of which came in the first half, their highest tally since 1999 at that stage of the competition (5).

Raphinha netted his seventh international goal in Brazil's final Group D fixture against Colombia, but insisted that Endrick's arrival in the starting line-up would not affect his role in the side. 

“My role on the field does not change. Endrick plays another position. We have that profile of adapting quickly to any position," he said. 

"My position on the field is not going to change. It will change depending on one or another player and the circumstances of the game.”

Dorival, meanwhile, said Brazil were under no illusions about the challenge of facing a Uruguay team who finished top of their first round group with a 100% record.

"They are a team that deserves all our respect," the Brazilian coach said.

"This could be a semi-final or the final of the Cup. We are rivals who know each other and respect each other and it will be a great match."