Uruguay’s debut in the CONMEBOL Copa América against Panama at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami left a clear sign of concern in the Celeste, since both Ronald Araújo and Mathías Olivera had to leave the playing field prematurely due to physical problems.
At halftime, the Barcelona defender suffered a sore ankle after a cross with Martínez that left him visibly feeling sick. So much so that the player was left lying on the playing field for several minutes and the healthcare team had to come in to treat him. Although he managed to compose himself to complete the last minutes of the first half, in the interval he was replaced by José María Giménez.
In the second half, when Uruguay was having the worst time, Mathías Olivera began to show signs of pain, so the coach reacted immediately and decided to replace him, bringing in Sebastián Cáceres to rebuild the last zone.
The departure of the two center backs caused the Celeste to be left with the last zone composed of Nahitan Nandez, José María Giménez, Sebastián Cáceres and Matías Viña, in a team that in the complement had a much more active task than in the initial stage.
