Paraguay will continue their quest to reach a first World Cup since 2010 when they welcome Chile to Asuncion in CONMEBOL qualifying on Thursday night.
La Albirroja sit sixth in the final automatic qualifying spot heading into the resumption of qualifying after a four-month break, while Chile are threatening to make a late charge after a dreadful start.
Match preview
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After a string of dull results to begin qualifying, Paraguay have become more exciting to watch, and with it, better results have come.
There have been just 15 goals scored across Paraguay’s first 12 qualifiers, but 10 of those have come in the last three games (six for, four against), and that has yielded a very impressive seven points.
Gustavo Alfaro‘s men won just 10 points in their first nine matches, but after beating Venezuela in October, Paraguay enjoyed an excellent pair of results in November.
After stunning the continent in beating Argentina to start November’s fixtures, Paraguay also earned a hard-fought point in the altitude of Bolivia, where many have fallen by the wayside in this section.
The cushion to the playoff place is now four points, and Paraguay will certainly be looking up, sitting one point behind Brazil, and with second-placed Uruguay only three points ahead.
As has been the case with many of Paraguay’s fixtures in qualifying, the reverse ended 0-0, but they will be wary after losing a friendly against Chile 3-0 prior to last summer’s Copa America.
It took a bit of time, but Ricardo Gareca now appears to have his Chile side in the place he wants it, with some positive results and performances resurrecting their chances of reaching the finals.
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The beauty of South American qualifying is that it is a marathon not a sprint, and after appearing to be down and out, Chile will now believe they have an outside shot at reaching the playoffs.
A 4-2 win over Venezuela on matchday 12 last time out has moved them off the bottom, and they are just four points adrift of the playoff place with six games remaining in the section.
La Roja were unfortunate to lose against Brazil late on in October, before drawing 0-0 in Peru, a few days prior to that crucial win over Venezuela.
A 6-1 friendly win over Panama last month outside of the FIFA-sanction international window should also be taken into account, considering some of the first-team squad was present, but their fixtures this month will be hugely challenging.
Any away game in South American qualifying is tough, and they will welcome in-form Ecuador to Santiago next week, but two positive results could put them in the ascendancy to snatch seventh place away from Venezuela and Bolivia.
Team News
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Paraguay captain Gustavo Gomez returned from injury at the weekend as a late substitute for Palmeiras, but he has been left at home as a precaution to protect him from further aggravating the issue.
Santiago Arzamendia is a surprise omission from a young squad which includes just two players with more than 50 caps, and Fluminense’s Ruben Lezcano is one of the potential debutants here.
Julio Enciso will hope for better fortunes at international level compared to what he has endured with Ipswich Town recently, and it was his injury-time strike that salvaged a point for La Albirroja against Bolivia last time out.
After many newcomers were named in the squad for the one-off friendly against Panama last month, Gareca has reverted back to a more familiar squad here.
Marcelino Nunez is not part of the squad after a tricky spell with injuries at Norwich City, joining absent duo Williams Alarcon and Erick Pulgar in missing out.
Fabian Hormazabal and Marcelo Morales are both out injured in defence, but there is plenty of experience in the squad still, with Alexis Sanchez, Arturo Vidal, Eduardo Vargas and Charles Aranguiz all included, with their combined total of 529 caps.
Paraguay possible starting lineup:
Fernandez; Velazquez, Balbuena, Alderete, Alonso; D Gomez, Cubas, Bobadilla, Almiron; Enciso, Sanabria
Chile possible starting lineup:
Cortes; Loyola, Maripan, Diaz, Suazo; Vidal, Echeverria; Sanchez, Pizarro, Cepeda; Vargas
We say: Paraguay 0-0 Chile
It is very easy to predict a 0-0 when Paraguay are involved, despite coming to life in November, but there is very little to separate these two when looking at their recent form, and it could well be a tense battle in Asuncion.
A draw would not be a bad result for either side, as it should keep Paraguay in a comfortable position in the top six, while any point on the road will be most welcome for Chile, who do need to maximise the output from their final few home encounters.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
