Peru |
2 - 0
This match has ended. Upcoming related matches:
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Paraguay |
Peru vs Paraguay Live Streams and TV Channels
| Country | Channels |
|---|---|
| United States | Dish Network, DirecTV |
| *Don't see your country or favourite channel listed? Let us know and we will include it. | |
Peru vs Paraguay Delayed and Repeat Broadcasts
| Country | Date/Time (US/Eastern) | Channel |
|---|---|---|
| Portugal | Sat, Oct 08 6:00am | Sport TV1 |
| *Don't see your country or favourite channel listed? Let us know and we will include it. | ||
Peru vs Paraguay Match Preview
There is great expectation in Peru as the hosts open their road to Brazil 2014 against Paraguay at the Estadio Nacional.
Inspired by striker Paulo Guerrero an exciting Peru claimed third-place at the Copa America.
There is great expectation ahead of the match, because both teams have heaps to prove. While Paraguay were the runner-ups of the Copa America, only losing to Uruguay in the final, the Peruvians crushed Venezuela to claim third-place, a historic feat for the nation, considering that they haven't had too much to cheer about in several years.
Even Ollanta Humala, the president of Peru, is behind Sergio Markarian's side, and during the week he visited the squad demanding a "triumph", because according to him it is about time that Peru qualify for soccer's maximum competition.
Peru have a strong squad, and Markarian has confirmed that the 'fantastic four', comprised of Claudio Pizarro, Juan Manuel Vargas, Paulo Guerrero and Jefferson Farfan will all begin the match from the kick-off.
"There is [great] emotion because the four of us will be there. We are the most important players of the national team and we need to be together, it has been a long time since it has been like this," declared Pizarro, the captain of Peru.
Peru has qualified for the World Cup on three occasions, however, the last time being in 1982, when it bowed out at the first hurdle.
In stark contrast, Paraguay have qualified for the past four World Cup finals, and are hoping to make it five in a row in Brazil. Despite reaching the final of the Copa America, Paraguay were a very defensive side and lacked any sort of flair in their game. Due to this, the Paraguayan F.A decided to replace Gerardo Martino with national team legend Francisco Arce as coach.
Despite the change, Arce has selected a similar squad to the one that participated in Argentina. The good news for Paraguay is that Benfica striker Oscar Cardozo is back in the national team fold, after having missed the Copa America due to injury.
A full house of 40,000 fans await both teams at the Estadio Nacional in Lima on Friday.
Peru vs Paraguay Match Report
New-look Peru put on a fine performance as they defeated Paraguay 2-0 in their World Cup qualifying opener.
Paolo Guerrero scored two second half goals
Peru, who featured their 'fantastic four', comprising of Claudio Pizarro, Jefferson Farfan, Juan Vargas and Paolo Guerrero, put on a fine display, winning the match with two second half goals from Guerrero, who also finished as the top goal-scorer of the Copa America.
Sergio Markarian's side dominated the first period, and although they were clearly superior to the Paraguayans, they had to wait until the first minute of the second half to get in-front, when Guerrero met a ball from Farfan, beat Paraguay defender Elvis Marecos, before rounding goalkeeper Diego Barreto and slotting home calmly.
In the 72nd minute Guerrero doubled Peru's advantage, when he was caught out perfectly in the box by Peru captain Pizarro, and rifled the ball home.
Despite playing some decent soccer in the midfield, Paraguay never looked dangerous when moving forward and this had much to do with the fact that Roque Santa Cruz was having an off game.
Francisco Arce's side continued to be outplayed by the Peruvians, and could easily have lost the match by a greater difference.
Peru, who finished rock-bottom of the 2010 South American World Cup qualifiers, have undergone a massive transformation under Markarian, and are expected to continue to produce good results as they intend to qualify for their first World Cup finals since 1982.
On Tuesday, Peru travel to Santiago to do battle with Chile, while Paraguay will be looking to avenge their defeat to Uruguay in the Copa America final, when both teams meet in Asuncion.