Uruguay are set to take on Paraguay at the Estadio Centenario on Saturday for matchday seven of their South American World Cup qualifying campaign. The hosts currently sit second in the table with 13 points, while the visitors are in seventh place, level on five points with eighth-placed Chile.
Following the extreme disappointment of crashing out in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup, something they had not done since 2002, Uruguay dismissed manager Diego Alonso and eventually hired Marcelo Bielsa in May 2023. Bielsa has had a fantastic impact on the Uruguayan national team, losing five of his 19 matches in charge across all competitions and guiding the side to a third-placed finish at the 2024 Copa America. Uruguay confidently won all three of their group-stage matches and remarkably defeated Brazil on penalties in the quarterfinals, but despite having 62% possession in the semifinals, they were unable to capitalise and lost 1-0 to Colombia. They narrowly beat Canada on penalties in the third-place playoff match after Luis Suarez scored a 92nd-minute equaliser to force a penalty shootout, which Uruguay won 4-2.
Heading into matchdays seven and eight of their South American FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Bielsa's side sit in a solid second place having taken 13 points from six fixtures, and they will be looking to solidify their position with two positive results in this international break. Their opponents, Paraguay, are likely to be low on confidence heading into Saturday's game after suffering an awful Copa America, crashing out in the group stage for the first time since 2016. They were defeated 2-1 by Colombia, 4-1 by Brazil and 2-1 by Costa Rica to leave them bottom of the group without taking any points, resulting in manager Daniel Oscar Garnero being sacked. Gustavo Alfaro has taken charge of the side and will be leading Paraguay into his first game as manager when they face Uruguay on Saturday, and the Argentinian will be hoping he can lead Paraguay to their first victory in this fixture since 2007.
Uruguay's all-time leading goalscorer, Suarez, recently announced that he would be retiring from international football, with the game against Paraguay set to be his last for his nation, and he is likely to start. Darwin Nunez, Rodrigo Bentancur, Ronald Araujo, Jose Maria Gimenez and Mathias Olivera are all banned for the next five international matches due to altercations with fans at the Copa America semifinal against Colombia. Matias Vina, Giorgian de Arrascaeta, Federico Vinas and Nicolas de la Cruz are all also out of the squad due to injury issues.
As for Paraguay, Antonio Sanabria is the only player to score for the team in their six World Cup qualifiers so far, and he is expected to lead the line in this one. Brighton & Hove Albion's Julio Enciso is also likely to start as part of an attacking midfield three, alongside Miguel Almiron and Ramon Sosa.
Paraguay possible starting lineup:Morinigo; Velazquez, Balbuena, Alderete, Espinoza; Villasanti, Bobadilla; Almiron, Enciso, Sosa; Sanabria
The hosts will want to produce a strong performance to give Suarez the perfect send-off in his final game for the country, and they should comfortably beat a poor Paraguay side. For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Suarez's Farewell: A Look Back at a Legendary Career
The match between Uruguay vs Paraguay will be played at the mythical Centenario Stadium. With 94 years of history and a capacity for 60,000 fans, it is the home of the Uruguayan national team. On July 18, 1983 it was declared by FIFA as a Historic Monument of World Football. Its turf has hosted world-class events such as the first FIFA World Cup, finals of the Intercontinental Cup and the Copa Libertadores.
While today's match is important, all the spotlight will be on Suarez in his last official match with the 'Celeste'. Should he score two goals, he will join Lionel Messi as the all-time top scorer in the South American qualifiers.
The 'Pistolero' retires from the Charrua national team after a great career with the sky-blue jersey. He played a total of 142 games, scoring 69 goals and dishing out 29 assists. The best player in Uruguay's history achieved enormous things with his national team, such as that 2010 World Cup in South Africa when they reached the semifinals, as well as winning the 2011 Copa América. Suáarez is the second top scorer in the qualifying rounds with 29 goals. In all his World Cups, he participated in 12 goals, with 7 goals and 5 assists. The most memorable is the one he scored against England on June 19, 2014 to stay alive in that dramatic group.
This will be the last time that Luchito will wear the blue and blue jersey and receive the ovation of the Uruguayan people.
Uruguay's Rise Under Bielsa and Paraguay's Struggles
The Uruguayan national team arrives in second place in the CONMEBOL qualifiers, just behind the world champions, Argentina. Out of six matches played, they won 4 (Chile, Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia), one draw (Colombia) and one defeat (Ecuador) and have a total of 13 points.
The last tournament played was the Copa América, where they reached the semifinals, playing great soccer, but lost 1-0 to the Colombians in the match prior to the final.
Paraguay arrives out of positions to qualify for the next World Cup as it is in the eighth position with 5 points with only 1 win (Bolivia), 2 draws (Peru, Chile) and 3 defeats (Venezuela, Argentina and Ecuador). In the Copa América they had a bad performance, losing three out of three matches against Colombia, Brazil and Costa Rica.
A Clash of Styles: Bielsa's Intensity vs. Alfaro's Transition
The history between the two teams is more even than the general public would expect. In a total of 77 matches, the Uruguayans have the advantage with 33 wins, while the Paraguayans have a total of 25 wins and have drawn on 19 occasions.
Uruguay began their World Cup qualifying campaign by winning just one of their opening three qualifiers (W1-D1-L1), but Marcelo Bielsa’s men have gone on to win each of their next three – including wins at home to Brazil and away at Argentina – to move them up into second position, just two points behind leaders Argentina. La Celeste have won each of their opening three qualifiers on home soil, scoring seven goals and conceding just once in the process.
Despite remarkably scoring just one goal so far in qualification, Paraguay have picked up five points from their opening six qualifiers (W1-D2-L3), with all five of those points coming against the three sides below them in the table, with their solitary victory coming in a 1-0 home win over notoriously poor travellers Bolivia. Gustavo Alfaro’s new side have already lost at home to Colombia (3rd) and away at both Argentina (1st) and Venezuela (4th), leaving them in seventh position, two points behind sixth-placed Brazil.
Uruguay Favored to Send Suarez Off in Style
This means if Uruguay wins by a single goal, we will receive our stakes back, whilst winning the match by two or more goals will reward a full payout.
