Colombia will aim to stay in the top three of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers standings when they visit Peru on Matchday 7. Despite their strong form, the team will be without veteran player Juan Guillermo Cuadrado.
The Atalanta player appears to have recovered from his injury, but he was also absent from the Colombian national team that finished as runners-up in the 2024 Copa América after losing the final to Argentina.
Juan Cuadrado will not play for Colombia against Peru due to a decision for physical preservation by coach Néstor Lorenzo. Although he was part of the Colombian squad last year, the midfielder has struggled this season with a chronic Achilles tendon injury.
The ailment affected his availability and consideration, leading the Argentine coach to, for now, decide to leave him out. “It wasn’t the season I hoped for, but I have to face this with maturity,” Cuadrado said.
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Cuadrado was on the bench for the first time this season in Atalanta’s 0-4 loss to Inter Milan on August 30. The former Juventus is expected to gradually recover fully and get back on the radar of the Colombian national team.
Juan Cuadrado of Colombia scores a penalty during the international friendly match between Germany and Colombia at Veltins-Arena on June 20, 2023 in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. (Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
When was Cuadrado’s last match with the Colombia national team?
Juan Cuadrado’s last match with the Colombia national teamwas a year ago, during the first matchday of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in September 2023.
The 36-year-old midfielder played 45 minutes in that 1-0 victory against Venezuela in Barranquilla. He has not been called up since.
