Colombia striker Radamel Falcao is ecstatic after scoring one of his two goals against Chile during their 2014 World Cup qualifier in Barranquilla on Friday. Photo: AFP

Colombia pulled off an amazing fightback to reach the World Cup for the first time since 1998 on Friday, rallying from 3-0 down to snatch a 3-3 draw against 10-man Chile in a six-goal thriller.
Monaco striker Radamel Falcao was the hero for the home side, keeping his cool to convert two late penalties as Colombia grabbed the point they needed to be certain of qualifying for next year's finals in Brazil.
Falcao's 84th-minute leveller capped an extraordinary turnaround for Jose Pekerman's Colombia, who had looked dead and buried inside the opening half hour after Chile raced to a 3-0 lead.
However the sending off of Chile's Carlos Carmona for two bookable offences midway through the second half was to be the catalyst for a remarkable comeback.
Teofilo Gutierrez pulled a goal back on 69 minutes to make it 3-1 before Falcao's late show gave Colombia a share of the points.
Chile had earlier looked certain to be heading for a win which would have seen them guarantee their ninth World Cup finals appearance after a flying start at a ground where Colombia had won their five previous matches.
Juventus star Arturo Vidal fired Chile into the lead on 19 minutes, sending Colombia keeper David Ospina the wrong way with a perfectly placed spot-kick to silence the home crowd.
Barcelona winger Alexis Sanchez then doubled the Chileans' lead three minutes later before adding a close-range second to make it 3-0 on 29 minutes.
Ecuador's 1-0 win over Uruguay in Quito means that Chile need only a point from their final game, against Ecuador in Santiago next Tuesday, to qualify.
Ecuador, too, will guarantee their place with a draw against the Chileans, making it highly likely that Uruguay will now have to settle for fifth and a play-off against Asian minnows Jordan to reach the World Cup.
Ecuador stayed on course for their first appearance at the World Cup since the 2006 finals in Germany with a hard-fought win over the Uruguayans.
The game's decisive goal came in the 30th minute, when Jefferson Montero tapped in from close-range after a surging run and low cross from the right flank by Manchester United winger Antonio Valencia.
Argentina meanwhile warmed up for their showdown with rivals Uruguay with another comfortable victory.
Despite the absence through injury of captain Lionel Messi, Argentina notched a 3-1 win over Peru in Buenos Aires.

RESULTS
Colombia 3 (Gutierrez 69, Falcao 75-pen, 84-pen)
Chile 3 (Vidal 19-pen, Sanchez 22, 29)
Ecuador 1 (Montero 30) Uruguay 0
Venezuela 1 (Seijas 83) Paraguay 1 (Benitez 28)
Argentina 3 (Lavezzi 23, 35, Palacio 47)
Peru 1 (Pizarro 21)