Peru vs. Paraguay will host at the Estadio Monumental in a friendly on Wednesday (November 16) ahead of the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup.
After failing to qualify for the World Cup through South America’s complicated qualifying system, Peru and Paraguay will meet in a friendly on Wednesday.
The teams will meet in Lima after the hosts were eliminated from Qatar 2022 in an intercontinental playoff and their visitors finished far behind, finishing eighth in a highly competitive CONMEBOL section.
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Peru was defeated on penalties, missing out on a return to this winter’s worldwide meeting of football nations due to the antics of Australia goalkeeper Andrew Redmayne in June’s playoff showdown to reach the World Cup finals.
Ricardo Gareca, who led La Blanquirroja to a 36-year finals drought in 2018, has overseen only one defeat in his team’s final six qualifiers, guiding them to the fifth position and eliminating Colombia and Chile in the process.
After losing in such sad fashion in the playoffs, Gareca resigned and was replaced by former Cruz Azul coach Juan Reynoso, who took over in August.
Peru returned to the international stage a month later with a 1-0 friendly setback against Mexico before defeating El Salvador in Washington, D.C., on their most recent tour.
Gareca played in five Copa Americas and captained his country to the 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-finals. Still, it remains to be seen how Peru responds to his methods as they prepare to host the Copa America in 2024, which the Andean nation still hopes to host.
More immediately, they must face Paraguay and this weekend’s opponents Bolivia in a pair of pre-season friendlies, the first of which sees them welcome back to Lima, a team they defeated in the qualifiers.
Losing 2-0 to Peru in March was only one of eight defeats for Paraguay on their way to Qatar, and with only three wins from 18 qualifying matches, they finished third-from-bottom in the CONMEBOL league.
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With the worst attacking record of any South American team, a tally of only 12 goals explains why they were never seriously considered for a return to the World Cup finals for the first time since 2010.
Five consecutive friendlies have resulted in victories against Mexico and the UAE. At the same time, La Albirroja were held to a goalless draw by Morocco at Seville’s Estadio Benito Villamarin in their most recent tour.
Guillermo Barros Schelotto’s team ended a three-game losing streak in September with a 1-0 triumph over the Mexicans thanks to Derlis Gonzalez’s 50th-minute strike, and they hope to build on that momentum this week.
After visiting Peru’s capital, Paraguay will continue to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where they will meet Colombia, another South American country that must watch the action in the Middle East from afar.
Peru vs. Paraguay Team News:
While hugely experienced regulars like goalkeeper-captain Pedro Gallesse and midfield fulcrum Christian Cueva have been recalled, Peru boss Juan Reynoso has also called up several new faces for this week’s friendly.
Uncapped players include Maritimo attacker Percy Liza, but Alex Valera may lead the lineup front in the absence of Cagliari forward Gianluca Lapadula and Seattle Sounders star Raul Ruidiaz.
Luis Advincula of Sporting Cristal, who has 108 caps, is also out, as is fellow centurion Yoshimar Yotun of Sporting Cristal. Miguel Araujo should fill Advincula’s right-back slot.
Meanwhile, Paraguay has dropped Torino’s Antonio Sanabria in favor of Brighton’s Julio Enciso to assist Derlis Gonzalez in the attack.
On his return to international duty, Newcastle United’s Miguel Almiron is in top form, and the 46-cap attacker might start on the right flank in midweek.
Corinthians’ Fabian Balbuena should again lead the visitors’ defense, creating a center-back pairing with captain Gustavo Gomez.
Peru’s likely starting lineup is as follows:
Reyna, Cueva, Aquino, Gonzales; Valera, Iberico
Possible starting lineup for Paraguay:
Silva; Piris, Gomez, Balbuena, Riveros; Villasanti, Galarza, Ortiz; Almiron, Gonzalez, Enciso; Almiron, Gonzalez, Enciso
Peru vs. Paraguay Predictions:
We predict Peru 1-0 Paraguay.
Neither team has been particularly potent in recent years, and a single goal could decide a close match. The hosts can use home advantage to take the initiative and break through their visitors’ experienced rearguard, resulting in a rare back-to-back victory.
