Alarm in the Colombian National Team due to the physical condition of Jefferson Lerma. The midfielder, usually a starter in the Tricolor, was called up by Néstor Lorenzo for the upcoming double matchday of the qualifiers; however, a problem with the toes on his foot took him out of his club’s last match – Crystal Palace – before the international break.
This Sunday, six days before the match between Colombia and Peru in Lima, the midfielder was left out of the Palace roster to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The English team’s coach, Oliver Glasner, confirmed that his absence was due to discomfort in his big toe.
“Yes, his problem is that his big toes are really crazy. No one knows where it came from, but it hurts him a lot when he puts on his boots, so it’s not possible to play today,” said the coach of The Eagles in a chat with Premier League Productions before the match in London, which ended in a 1-1 draw (Daniel Muñoz played the full 90 minutes).
A more detailed report is awaited to determine whether Lerma’s call-up to the Colombian National Team is at risk. For now, he is one of the eight midfielders called up to face Peru and Argentina in matchdays 7 and 8 of the South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.
It is worth mentioning that in the Copa América in June-July, Jefferson was a starter in five of the six matches that Colombia played. He only missed, due to yellow card accumulation, the quarter-final match against Panama (victory 5-0). In the final against Argentina, he played 105 minutes before being replaced by Matheus Uribe at halftime of extra time.
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