Batistuta and Salcido warn Colombia about World Cup favorite pressure

Colombia opened the World Cup 2026 with a 3-1 victory over Uzbekistan in Ciudad de México, a result that put the Selección Colombia atop Group K and immediately sharpened the pressure around a side now being treated as a contender. Daniel Muñoz, Luis Díaz and Jaminton Campaz scored in the win, a start that matched the expectations building around a team led by James Rodríguez and Diaz.

That is where Gabriel Batistuta and Carlos Salcido stepped in with the warning that good form is only part of the job. The two former players, now part of Telemundo Deportes coverage, said Colombia’s strong tournament run has to be matched by mental preparation if the squad is going to handle the burden of arriving as one of the favorites. In a tournament where every mistake is magnified, they framed Colombia’s challenge as psychological as much as tactical.

Néstor Lorenzo has leaned into that ambition. In an exclusive conversation with Maxi Rodríguez, the Colombia coach said his team must “buscar ser protagonistas” and insisted it has the tools to compete with anyone. Lorenzo went further, saying that reaching “el último día” of the tournament, meaning the final, is part of his target for the FIFA World Cup 2026. For a squad that has already shown attacking punch, the next test is sustaining control when expectation changes the way opponents and teammates behave.

FIFA’s profile of Colombia, published on June 2, 2026, underscores why the team is drawing that kind of attention. The governing body identifies Luis Díaz as the side’s main attacking figure and James Rodríguez as captain and Colombia’s all-time leading scorer in FIFA World Cup play. It also lists Colombia’s 2026 opponents as Uzbekistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Portugal, a group that leaves little room for the kind of lapse that can erase a strong opening. With Batistuta and Salcido drawing attention to the mental strain of being a favorite, Colombia’s next matches will test whether its early goals can be matched by the discipline that title contenders need.