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In the second round of South American FIFA World Cup 2022 qualifiers, Venezuela welcome Paraguay to Estadio Metropolitano on Tuesday night.
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Venezuela were overpowered by a commanding first-half display from Colombia in their opening fixture which ended 3-0 in favour of Los Cafeteros and now find themselves ninth in the standings. Paraguay fared a little better in their first game of the qualifiers and played out the only draw of the first round of fixtures against Peru.
This game is a must-win for both the sides as they are scheduled to travel to Brazil and Argentina respectively in their next fixture and might not be able to get a desired result against the heavyweights.
Venezuela vs Paraguay Head-to-Head
The South American rivals have gone head-to-head across all competitions 25 times, with their first meeting dating back to 1967 and their latest encounter coming in 2017 in the World Cup qualifiers.
Both teams have a healthy record in their encounters, especially in recent games but The White and Red dominate the head-to-head record, mainly because of their dominance before the turn of the century.
Of the 25 previous games, Paraguay have won 17, while La Vinotinto have only four wins and the remaining four games ended in stalemates.
Venezuela form guide: L-W-W-W-D
Paraguay form guide: D-W-L-D-W
Venezuela vs Paraguay Team News
For head coach José Peseiro, some changes in the starting XI are expected after his side let in three goals in the first 45 minutes against Colombia. Having said that, there are few options for Peseiro to choose from.
Luckily, there are no injury concerns for the manager and thus he has a fully-fit squad at his disposal heading into the crucial home game. It will probably be wise for them to start striker Salomon Rondon in the game to increase their chances of getting on the scoresheet.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Paraguay have a strong squad and some of the players play in Europe's top leagues, including West Ham United centre-back Fabian Balbuena, who did not start against Peru, and Newcastle United midfielder Miguel Almiron, who played the whole 90 minutes.
Angel Romero bagged a brace in the second half coming on as a substitute, assisted with both goals by debutant right-back Alberto Espínola. The duo is expected to retain their place in the squad. There are no injury concerns for manager Eduardo Berizzo and he will thus have the entire 30-man squad at his disposal.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Venezuela vs Paraguay Predicted XI
Venezuela Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Wulker Farinez; Rolf Feltscher, Luis Del Pino Mago, Jhon Chancellor, Roberto Rosales; Yangel Herrera, Tomas Rincon; Juanpi, Jefferson Savarino, Darwin Machis; Salomon Rondon
Paraguay Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Antony Silva; Alberto Espínola Giménez, Fabian Balbuena, Gustavo Gomez, Blas Riveros; Andre Cubas, Gastón Giménez; Mathias Villasanti, Miguel Almiron, Angel Romero; Dario Leczano
Venezuela vs Paraguay prediction
Venezuela failed to score against Colombia and they lacked edge in the final third. On the other hand, we have Paraguay who scored two goals in the second half and boasts a good record against their opponents ahead of Tuesday's game.
Venezuela did not look solid in their previous outing and, even after a personnel change, they might find it difficult to defend against a good attacking side like Paraguay. We believe the visitors have what it takes to inflict a second loss in a row over Venezuela when these sides meet on Tuesday.
Predictin: Venezuela 0-1 Paraguay
