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Paraguay national football team

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The Paraguay national football team is the national team of Paraguay and is controlled by the Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol.The Paraguay national football team has reached the second round of the World Cup on three occasions (in 1986, 1998 and 2002) but has never advanced beyond that stage. Paraguay's only major tournament victories have come in the Copa América, in which they triumphed in 1953 and 1979. They also won a silver medal in the football tournament at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games, being defeated 1-0 by Argentina in the final. It was the first Olympic medal Paraguay ever won in any sport.

Paraguay's current squad is more well-known for its defensive skill than its ability to score goals, with players such as Denis Caniza and captain Carlos Gamarra being amongst its most prominent members. However, the future of this strategy looks questionable due to the recent international retirement of defenders Francisco Arce and Celso Ayala, and that of world-famous goalkeeper José Luis Chilavert. Several key players are now in the latter stages of their career, so Paraguay will be looking to harness talent amongst the younger generation if they are to maintain the increase in status they have achieved over the past decade. There is optimism that this can occur, as Paraguay's under-19 side won the Milk Cup in both 2002 and 2003.

Contents

History

Paraguay participated in the first World Cup in 1930 and also appeared in the 1950 tournament, failing to advance to the next round. Throughout their history they have proven to be a competitive force in South American football as two Copa América wins and a silver medal at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games attest.

Paraguay surprisingly qualified ahead of Uruguay (beating them 5-0 in the decisive game) for the 1958 World Cup with a team that contained a formidable attacking lineup with stars such as Juan Aguero, Jose Parodi, Juan Romero, Cayetano Ré and Florencio Amarilla. In their first game in Sweden, Paraguay were 3-2 up against France in a game they lost 7-3. A 3-2 win over Scotland and a 3-3 draw with Yugoslavia saw Paraguay finish third in their group.

The departure of several of their stars for European football (mainly Spain) resulted in a weakening of Paraguay's football fortunes somewhat, but they were only edged out by Mexico in the 1962 qualifiers. Paraguay fell short in subsequent World Cup qualifying campaigns, but Copa América success (and that of one of its premier clubs Olimpia in the Copa Libertadores) sured up Paraguay as a solid player on the continent.

Paraguay ended a 28-year absence from the World Cup in 1986 with a team starring midfield playmaker Romerito. They reached the second round where they were beaten 3-0 by England. Since then Paraguay have qualified for three successive World Cups and established a reputation as a defensively obdurate team.

World Cup record

Copa América record

 

Most Paraguay caps

Player Paraguay career Caps (Goals)

Carlos Gamarra 1993-2006 109 (12)

Roberto Acuña 1993-2006 96 (5)

Celso Ayala 1993-2003 85 (6)

José Saturnino Cardozo 1991-present 82 (25)

Roberto Fernández 1976-1989 78 (0)

Juan Bautista Torales 1979-1989 77 (1)

Denis Caniza 1996-2006 77 (1)

José Luis Chilavert 1989-2003 74 (8)

Estanislao Struway 1991-2002 74 (4)

Carlos Humberto Paredes 1998-present 71 (10)

Julio César Enciso 1995-2004 70 (2)

Top Paraguay goalscorers

Player Paraguay career Goals (Caps)

José Saturnino Cardozo 1991-present 25 (82)

Saturnino Arrúa 1969-1980 13 (26)

Julio César Romero 1979-1986 13 (32)

Roque Santa Cruz 1999-present 13 (45)

Gerardo Rivas 1921-1926 12 (32)

Carlos Gamarra 1993-present 12 (109)

Miguel Angel Benítez 1996-1999 11 (29)

Juan Bautista Villalba 1945-1947 10 (22)

Aurelio González 1924-1937 10 (23)

Carlos Humberto Paredes 1998-present 10 (71)

Famous players

2006 World Cup Squad

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  • Paraguay lost their second game of group B and as a result are now out of the world cup. They conceded to Sweden in the last moments of the game losing 1-0. The goal came from Arsenal winger Fredrik Ljungberg. Paraguay's final game of the world cup will be against Trinidad and Tobago on the 20th of June in Kaiserslauten.
  • Paraguay got their first win of the tournament by defeating Trinidad and Tobago 2-0 in the third game of group B, played in Kaiserslautern. The goals were scored by Sancho (T&T own goal) at the 25th minute, and Nelson Cuevas at the 86th minute. Despite the win, Paraguay failed to qualify for the third consecutive time to the second round.

External links

Football in Paraguay

Paraguayan Football Association | National team | | | League system
| List of clubs | | | | Awards      [http://encycl.opentopia.com/ edit]

|- !style="background:#BFD7FF;"|

|- style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;" | FIFA | World Cup | Confederations Cup | World Rankings | Player of the Year | Teams

|- style="text-align:left; font-size:90%;" |

     Asia: AFC – Asian Cup
     Africa: CAF – African Cup of Nations
     North America: CONCACAF – Gold Cup
     South America: CONMEBOL – Copa América
     Oceania: OFC – Nations Cup
     Europe: UEFA – European Championship
|

|- !style="background:#BFD7FF;"|

|- style="text-align:center;" | Argentina | Bolivia | Brazil | Chile | Colombia | Ecuador | Paraguay | Peru | Uruguay | Venezuela

|- !style="background:#BFD7FF;"|

|- style="text-align:center;" | Champions: Italy 

Runners-up: France 

Third place: Germany 

Eliminated in knockout stage: Argentina | Australia | Brazil | Ecuador | England | Ghana | Mexico | Netherlands | Portugal | Spain | Sweden | Switzerland | Ukraine 

Eliminated in group stage: Angola | Costa Rica | Côte d'Ivoire | Croatia | Czech Republic | Iran | Japan | Korea Republic | Paraguay | Poland | Saudi Arabia | Serbia and Montenegro | Togo | Trinidad and Tobago | Tunisia | USA

 

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