Brazil became the first South American side to qualify for the FIFA World Cup 2022 after defeating Colombia 1-0 in their own backyard on Friday (November 12). The Selecao won the match thanks to a goal by attacking midfielder Lucas Paqueta in the 72nd minute. Brazil now lead the point standings with 34 points, six more than arch-rival Argentina.  Brazil still have six matches left in the qualifiers, and with their current form, they may easily finish with 50 points. Let's take a look at the current CONMEBOL 2022 World Cup qualifying standings. Match Report: Brazil vs. Colombia Lucas Paqueta of Olympique Lyon scored his sixth goal for the Brazilian national team against Colombia on Friday (November 12), ensuring the Selecao becomes the first South American team to qualify for the FIFA World Cup 2022. Read Four Nations Football: Bangladesh play 1-1 draw with Seychelles  Brazil's coach Tite fielded his strongest starting XI against Colombia in front of home spectators with the aim of gaining a spot in the mega event. As predicted, Brazil controlled most of the ball possession in the first half but were unable to score. Colombia had a strong defense. It was a crucial match for Colombia in their quest for a World Cup spot. So they were aiming for a draw, but their resistance was broken in the 72nd minute of the game. Paqueta's attempt in the D-box was deflected by goalkeeper David Ospina, who was unable to save the ball. Brazil scored in the final quarter of the game, and the contest ended with this scoreline. Read: Four Nations Football: Bangladesh to play the Maldives on Saturday Match Stats: Colombia vs. Brazil   According to the match statistics, Brazil had 64 percent ball possession while Colombia had 36 percent. The home team completed 602 passes compared to 346 for the visiting team. Brazil received four yellow cards for fouling. On the other hand, Colombia received three yellow cards. Brazil will meet Argentina in their next FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifier On Wednesday (November 17).  Current Standings of South American FIFA World Cup 2022 Qualifiers  Argentina also won their qualifier match 1-0 against Uruguay, putting them in second place with 28 points. Ecuador are now in a strong position in the standings after defeating Venezuela 1-0 at home. Ecuador are ranked third in the points table, with a total of 20 points. Chile defeated Paraguay in a crucial match, while Peru thrashed Bolivia 3-0. It should be noted that four teams from the South American zone will qualify straight for the World Cup next year, while the fifth-place team will be allowed to compete in an inter-confederation play-off. Read Four Nations Football: Host Sri Lanka plays out 4-4 draw with Maldives

Argentina thrashed Uruguay 3-0 at home in a South American World Cup 2022 qualifiers match on Sunday (October 10). On the other hand, Brazil drew 0-0 with Colombia away from home. Brazil dropped points for the first time in the current qualification matches. The Argentine superstar Lionel Messi was brilliant against Uruguay, setting a new international record in his illustrious career. Three more World Cup qualifiers were played on Sunday. Let's take a look at the outcomes of CONMEBOL's World Cup qualifiers. Results of the South America World Cup 2022 Qualifiers: Matchday 10 and 11 Argentina vs. Uruguay Argentina made a strong start and seized the lead in the 38th minute due to Lionel Messi's brilliant chip strike from outside the D-Box. Rodrigo de Paul extended Argentina's lead within six minutes. After that, Lautaro Martinez of Inter Milan scored Argentina's third goal in the 62nd minute, putting the game out of reach for the visitors. Argentina enjoyed possession of the ball, and goalkeeper Emi Martinez once again proved his true class by stopping two fantastic efforts from Luis Suarez. Read: Lionel Messi's Charity Work: Exemplary philanthropy of legendary footballer Colombia vs. Brazil Brazil dominated the ball possession and attempted to score numerous times, but failed to find the net during the 90 minutes. They had 4 shots on target in 9 attempts. This was Brazil's first draw in the South American World Cup 2022 qualifiers. On the other hand, Colombia did a fantastic job of tightening up its defense. Bolivia vs. Peru It was a tight contest between the two teams, with the host Bolivia winning by a single goal. Bolivia enjoyed the most ball possession, but it took them till the 82nd minute to score. Bolivia climbed to 9th place with this victory, while Peru remained in seventh place with 11 points. Venezuela vs. Ecuador Venezuela defeated one of the table toppers, Ecuador at home. They won the match with a score of 2-1. Ecuador took the lead in the 37th minute, but Venezuela equalized in the first half's injury time. The home team scored the match-winning goal in the 64th minute. Venezuela are still at the bottom of the points table. Read UEFA Nations League 2021: France Beat Spain in the Final to Become Champion Chile vs. Paraguay Chile needed to win this game to keep in contention for a place in the top four. They did an excellent job and won the game 2-0. Chile have moved up to the eighth place with ten points after this victory. On the other hand, Paraguay are in the sixth position with 12 points. Lionel Messi’s New International Record  Lionel Messi became the first South American player to score 80 international goals during the encounter against Uruguay. Lionel Messi's 80th goal came in the 38th minute of the match. He is now three goals clear of Brazilian legend Pele (77). Neymar comes in third with 69 goals, followed by Uruguayan Luis Suarez with 64 international goals. Read France wins Nations League with late goal from Mbappé Ronaldo Nazario ended his career with 62 goals and Romario netted 55 international goals for Brazil. Messi's countrymen Gabriel Batistuta led Argentina with 53 goals, followed by Edinson Cavani of Manchester United with 53 goals for Uruguay. Messi is currently the fifth most prolific international goal scorer of all time. He needs 5 more goals to overtake former Real Madrid star Ferenc Puskas, who scored 84 goals for Hungary. Former Malaysia striker Mokhtar Dahari is third on the list with 89 international goals, followed by Ali Daei of Iran with 109. Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo is now in first place with 112 international goals. Bottom Line   Argentina and Brazil are leading the South American World Cup 2022 qualifiers. Brazil are six points ahead of Argentina with 28 points, who are in the second position. On the other hand, Argentina are six points ahead of third-placed Ecuador. The rest of the eight nations are battling it out for third and fourth place. There will undoubtedly be many more exciting contests in the forthcoming CONMEBOL World Cup qualifier fixtures. Read  Argentina wins; Brazil draws in World Cup qualifiers