World Cup Qualifying - South America | Group Stage

Mar 21, 2025 at 12am UK

Estadio Manuel Ferreira

Paraguay vs Chile

Match preview

After a string of dull results at the start of qualifying, Paraguay have become more exciting to watch, and their results have improved accordingly.

Only 15 goals were scored in Paraguay's first 12 qualifiers, but 10 of those have come in their last three games (six for, four against), yielding an impressive seven points.

Gustavo Alfaro's men collected just 10 points from their first nine games, but after beating Venezuela in October, Paraguay enjoyed two excellent results in November.

Having stunned the continent by beating Argentina at the start of November, Paraguay also earned a hard-earned point in the high altitude of Bolivia, where many have fallen by the wayside in this section.

The cushion on the play-off places is now four points and Paraguay will be looking up at Brazil, one point behind, and Uruguay, in second, just three points behind.

As with many of Paraguay's qualifying matches, the reverse ended 0-0, but they will be wary after losing 3-0 to Chile in a friendly before last summer's Copa America.

It has taken some time, but Ricardo Gareca now seems to have his Chilean side where he wants them, with some positive results and performances reviving their chances of reaching the finals.

The beauty of South American qualifying is that it is a marathon, not a sprint, and after appearing to be on the brink, Chile will now believe they have an outside chance of reaching the play-offs.

A 4-2 win over Venezuela on Matchday 12 lifted them off the bottom of the standings and they now sit just four points adrift of a play-off spot with six games remaining.

La Roja were unfortunate to lose to Brazil at the end of October, before drawing 0-0 in Peru a few days before their crucial win over Venezuela.

A 6-1 friendly win over Panama last month outside the FIFA-sanctioned international window should also be taken into account, as some of the first-team squad were present, but their fixtures this month will be extremely challenging.

Every away game in South American qualifying is tough, and they welcome in-form Ecuador to Santiago next week, but two positive results could see them leapfrog Venezuela and Bolivia into seventh place.

Recent Performance

Paraguay World Cup Qualifying form:DWDWWD

Chile World Cup Qualifying form:LLLLDW

Chile form (all competitions):LLLDWW

Team News

Paraguay captain Gustavo Gomez returned from injury as a late substitute against Palmeiras at the weekend, but has been kept at home as a precautionary measure to avoid aggravating the problem.

Santiago Arzamendia is a surprise omission from a young squad that includes just two players with more than 50 caps, with Fluminense's Ruben Lezcano one of the potential debutants.

Julio Enciso will be hoping for better fortunes on the international stage than he has had recently with Ipswich Town, and it was his injury-time strike that earned La Albirroja a point against Bolivia last time out.

After calling up a number of new players for the one-off friendly against Panama last month, Gareca has reverted to a more familiar look here.

Marcelino Nunez has been left out of the squad after an injury-hit spell with Norwich City, while Williams Alarcon and Erick Pulgar are also absent.

Fabian Hormazabal and Marcelo Morales are both out injured at the back, but there is still plenty of experience in the squad, with Alexis Sanchez, Arturo Vidal, Eduardo Vargas and Charles Aranguiz all boasting a combined 529 caps.

Possible starting lineup

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