World Cup qualifying isn't going smoothly for any of South America's big guns so far, and Argentina has struggled the most. They have two points from their first three games, following a pair of draws and a surprising home loss to Ecuador. Their task gets even harder on Tuesday when they go away to Colombia.
It hasn't exactly been smooth for Colombia either -- they got taken apart in Uruguay and had to battle for a draw against Chile -- but they're in decent shape. An away draw, an away loss and a win at home against Peru is a solid record. If they can take points off Argentina at home, they'll like where they stand.
Argentina is without their two biggest stars due to injury, Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero, while Pablo Zabaleta misses out as well. Colombia are missing Jackson Martinez, Radamel Falcao, Edwin Valencia and Eder Alvarez Balanta due to injuries, as well as Juan Cuadrado because of a suspension.
Key player -- Gonzalo Higuain
With Messi and Aguero out, Higuain needs to be a little bit of both of them. He's struggled in an Albiceleste shirt for most of his career, but he set up a goal on Friday, and his team needs him to lead the line as a creator and goal threat again on Tuesday.
Hot seat -- Will Gerardo Martino get fired if he doesn't win?
Quite possibly. The Argentinian FA might be nice and grade him on the non-Messi curve, but Argentina will be in quite a bit of trouble if they fail to defeat Colombia in this match. If he's four matches into qualifying without a win, including a failure to win at home against Brazil, Martino could be sent packing. It doesn't help him that firing him now gives Argentina months to find the perfect replacement.
Match Date/Time: Tuesday, 3:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez, Barranquilla, Colombia
TV: beIN Sports en Español (U.S. and Canada -- Spanish), TyC (Argentina), Caracol (Colombia).
Online: beIN Sports Connect (U.S. and Canada)