By Matthew Stanger for Football365.com
The prospect of two games in the same stadium, and a game in which the majority of fans didn't support either team, was odd. The reality was just as bizarre for Matthew Stanger...
The second round of matches is underway at the Copa America, and Friday sees another double-header as Chile play Uruguay and Peru take on Mexico in Mendoza.
This format of two games in one stadium on the same evening worked surprisingly well in San Juan earlier in the week for the opening fixtures in Group C. With over 15,000 fans in attendance Chile practically had home advantage, and this made for quite a surreal experience during Uruguay vs Peru, which kicked off first.
The Chileans outnumbered the Peruvians, Uruguayans and Mexicans by 5:1, and they were keen to make this count as they ridiculed and out-sang their counterparts throughout. The strangest moment of evening was when Peruvian striker Guerrero was through on goal with the Chile fans encouraging him to score and then as soon as he converted, they immediately went back to booing and jeering the Peruvians. I've never been to a football match before where the majority of fans in the crowd weren't supporting either of the two teams playing. If it wasn't for Friday, I'd say I probably wouldn't find myself in that position again.
Mendoza is two hours South of San Juan and is Argentina's premier wine producing region. The most popular activity in town is to take a bike out to the bodegas and cycle around sampling the grapes. For some reason, there's also plenty of...Read full article
