Paraguay vs Colombia

Paraguay will be looking to take all three points and Colombia’s place in the standings when the two nations lock horns at the Estadio Defensores del Chaco in a high-stake 2022 World Cup qualifying encounter.

Despite some spirited displays at the Copa America 2021, which resulted in a heartbreaking quarter-final exit to Peru via penalties, Paraguay continued to struggle in the ongoing World Cup qualifying campaign. A 2-0 loss away to Ecuador last time out left Paraguay at a single win from seven World Cup qualifying games (D4, L2), as they hover two points adrift of fifth-placed Colombia ahead of the kick-off. Even though they remain firmly in contention for securing a berth at the upcoming World Cup finals, a run of three World Cup qualifiers without scoring remains a massive concern. Indeed, only rock-bottom Venezuela (4) have netted fewer goals than Paraguay (6) in the ongoing CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying cycle. On the bright side, four of those strikes have arrived on home soil, with ‘Los Guaraníes’ scoring precisely twice per game in two of their three home outings to date.

On the other hand, the Colombians are dealing with a drop-off in form of their own, having won just one of their last six World Cup qualifying fixtures (D3, L2). They can at least draw confidence from going unbeaten in their previous three World Cup qualifiers (W1, D2), getting on the scoresheet first twice in the process. But except for a 3-0 thumping of Peru in June, the visitors have failed to keep a clean sheet in their remaining three away World Cup qualifying games (D2, L1), emphasizing growing defensive woes. ‘Los Cafeteros’ can fall back on their encouraging Copa America 2021 performances that saw them secure a third-place finish. What’s more, Colombia have prevailed in six of their last seven H2H duels with Paraguay (L1), scoring the opening goal on as many occasions.