World Cup 2010 Previews: Paraguay

Paraguay!

We are pleased to have some great guests lined up to help out with our previews, and AP is exactly that: they know South American soccer like no-one else, so without further ado…

Country Name: Paraguay
Nicknames: Guaraníes, La Albirroja (White and red)
Coach: Geraldo Martino (Argentina)

Paraguay reached its fourth consecutive World Cup Finals by finishing third in South America with 33 points, one point less than Brazil and only edged out by Chile on goal difference. Along the way, Paraguay managed to beat the region’s powerhouses Brazil and Argentina in Asunción with quality players across the pitch. The other side of the coin shows that their campaign’s brilliance was not sustained as they lost to lesser teams, evident with losses home and away to Colombia.

Regardless, the team has probably been the one the most consistent in South America through qualification, exemplified by a solid defensive record that only allowed 16 goals in 18 matches.

World Cup Appearances:
Seven (1930, ’50, ’58, ’86, ’98, ’02, ’06)

30-man Preliminary Squad:
GK:
Justo Villar (Spain, Valladolid), Aldo Bobadilla (Colombia, Independiente Medellín), Diego Barreto (Paraguay, Cerro Porteño)

DF:
Julio Manzur (Paraguay, Olimpia), Paulo da Silva (England, Sunderland), Carlos Bonet (Paraguay, Olimpia), Aureliano Torres (Argentina, San Lorenzo), Denis Caniza (Mexico León), Marcos Cáceres (Argentina Racing), Julio César Cáceres (Brazil, Atlético Mineiro), Darío Verón (Mexico, UNAM), Claudio Morel Rodríguez (Argentina Boca Juniors), Antolín Alcaraz (England Wigan Athletic)

MF:
Marcelo Estigarribia (Argentina Newell’s Old Boys), Jonathan Santana (Germany, Wolfsburg), Néstor Ortigoza (Argentina, Argentinos Juniors), Cristian Riveros (England, Sunderland), Enrique Vera (Ecuador, LDU Quito), Víctor Cáceres (Paraguay, Libertad), Édgar Barreto (Italy, Atalanta), Sergio Aquino (Paraguay, Libertad), Eduardo Ledesma (Argentina, Lanús), Osvaldo Martínez (Mexico, Monterrey)

FW:
Rodolfo Gamarra (Paraguay, Libertad), Roque Santa Cruz (England, Manchester City), Nelson Haedo Valdez (Germany, Borussia Dortmund), Óscar Cardozo (Portugal, Benfica), Édgar Benítez (Mexico, Pachuca), Jorge Achucarro (Argentina, Newell’s Old Boys), Lucas Barrios (Germany, Borussia Dortmund)

Fixtures:
Paraguay vs Italy – June 14th, 2:30p EST – Cape Town
Paraguay vs Slovakia – June 20th, 7:30a EST – Bloemfontein
Paraguay vs New Zealand – June 24th, 10:00a EST – Polokwane

Home Base:
Mossel Bay

World Cup History:
Paraguay have the distinction of being one of the fourteen teams that took part in the inaugural tournament. They didn’t do well, winning one and losing one en route to an opening round exit.

Twenty years later they featured in Brazil with the same basic result: one draw, one defeat, home early. A 1-1-1 streak in 1958 consigned them to the same fate, but since then, they’ve fared slightly better, reaching the Round of 16 in 1986, 1998, and 2002. Germany ’06 was a fall back to reality. Losing to England and Sweden doomed them early; and, even though they closed with a 2-0 win over Trinidad & Tobago, La Albirroja suffered another early exit.

Paraguay's WC kit…

Recent Form:
There is a certain expectation among the local media that a 2nd round spot is the minimum the team needs to accomplish. Some may go so bold as to push for a quarterfinal spot, citing the unlikely run of the team’s silver medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics as the team’s maturity. Since then, Paraguay seemed to have lost some confidence after securing their spot to Finals with a 1-0 win against struggling Argentina.

In recent friendly games, Paraguay could only manage a draw with South Africa and lost 2-1 with Ireland on May 25. Martino may claim to be testing out players, but at this stage of the preparations it seems to be more of a foreshadowing of things to come.

Team Style:
Martino is a protégé of the Chile’s Marcelo “el loco” Bielsa from their days at Newell’s Old Boys in Argentina. Although not nearly have the same care free attacking style of Chile, Paraguay has been known to switch from a standard 4-4-2 to 4-3-1-2 or 3-4-3. The latter formations often have more success on the likes of Argentina and Brazil. Italy should be wary of a more aggressive style in the team’s opening match.

Key Players:
There is no other place to start than the key player missing: Salvador Cabanas. For those of you who haven’t heard of this truly sad, albeit inspirational, story read it here. Analysts will point to Paraguay missing his goals (6 goals during qualifiers) the most. However, the real impact that will be missed is Salvador (Spanish for ‘savior’) Cabanas’ ability to use his hulk-like strength and pace to create a game-changing play single-handedly. His size constantly causes trouble for defenders. This video shows the kind of inspiration that Cabanas provides, assisting in the goal that gave Paraguay a 1-0 win over Argentina. Cabanas won’t be at the World Cup as a player, but hopefully he can join the team as a spectator and maybe serve as the inspirational figure to lifts this team during tough times.

Salvador Cabanas: He Will Be Missed This Summer

Other key players that will actually play include the captain and experienced goalkeeper Justo Villar, who for our English fans will remember from their first match in Germany ’06 was in net when Paraguay conceded an own-goal and Villar suffered a serious injury inside the first five minutes. For those with short memory, look at this video (skip ahead to the 3rd minute). This has been motivation for Villar to fester over for four years, and now he has a massive opportunity to redeem himself.

In the backline, a player who plays a key role in that tight unit is Claudio Morel. This player has the tendency to move up the pitch during the team’s more offensive outings, but otherwise he is a rock solid defender with superb technical skills and the willingness to chase down loose balls. Lastly, Oscar Cardozo, who has enjoyed a terrific season in a prolific strike force in Benfica in Portugal, can really benefit if regulars like Cruz and Valdez don’t produce anything after an hour’s worth of play.

Question Marks:
Where will the goals come from? Haedo Valdez and Santa Cruz have been consistently under-performing, relying on Cabanas in qualifying to get the job done. Their best option is opting for younger blood upfront if the goals don’t come quickly. Will Martino go with untested youth or sluggish experience up top?

UF Prediction:
Paraguay will match their best finish by leaving the group stage as the runners-up, which sets them up with an unfortunate encounter against the Netherlands. The key game for Paraguay is June 20 when the side plays Slovakia. Before that, Paraguay need to go all-out against the defending champions. As the Italians are notoriously slow starters, and don’t seem to have the same quality squad as they had 4 years ago, the Paraguayans could take full points in that opening match. That means they could cruise to top of the group with a draw and win over Slovakia and New Zealand, respectively. and look for a more favorable paring of either Denmark or Cameroon in the second round.