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The quarter-final stage of the Copa America 2021 kicks off with Peru taking on Paraguay in Goiania on Friday.
Peru finished second in Group 'B', amassing seven points from four games. A 1-0 win against an undermanned Venezuela side on the final day of the group stages was enough for Ricardo Gareca's team to qualify for the last eight.
Paraguay qualified for the quarter-finals despite losing their last group fixture against Uruguay. They finished third in their group, only behind pre-tournament favorites Argentina and Uruguay. They registered a record of two wins and two losses.
Peru vs Paraguay Head-to-Head
Peru and Paraguay have squared off in 53 matches so far. Los Guaraníes have won 23 of these matches, while Peru have managed to get the better of Paraguay 16 times. 14 matches ended in a stalemate.
The last meeting between the two South American sides ended in an entertaining 2-2 draw in October 2020. Angelo Romero and Andre Carrillo each scored braces, as the two teams couldn't be separated on the day.
Peru form guide: W-D-W-L-W
Paraguay form guide: L-W-L-W-L
Also Read: David James column - Top 5 favorites to win Euro 2020
Peru vs Paraguay Team News
Peru
Ricardo Gareca made the bold decision to leave star forward Paolo Guerrero out of the Copa squad, but Gianluca Lapadula's performances have justified his choice so far.
Peru have no injury concerns going into Friday's game and will be lifted by the return of defender Christian Ramos. The center-back was suspended for their last game after picking up his second yellow card of the group stage.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Paraguay
Eduardo Berizzo will have a fully-fit roster to pick his starting XI from for the quarter-finals clash against Peru.
Alejandro Romero is in contention to start after two successive games on the bench. The rest of the lineup is expected to remain unchanged from Paraguay's last match.
Injured: None
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
Peru vs Paraguay Predicted XI
Peru Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Pedro Gallese; Marcos Lopez, Alexander Callens, Christian Ramos, Aldo Corzo; Yoshimar Yotun, Renato Tapia; Christian Cueva, Sergio Pena, Andre Carillo; Gianluca Lapadula
Paraguay Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Antony Silva; Santiago Arzamendia, Junior Alonso, Gustavo Gomez, Alberto Espinola; Robert Piris Da Motta, Mathias Villasanti; Miguel Almiron, Angel Romero, Braian Samudio; Gabriel Avalos
Peru vs Paraguay Prediction
Peru's slightly better form and their recent experience of making the final gives them a slight edge over Paraguay.
Considering it's a knockout fixture, the tie could tilt in any team's favor, but we expect Los Incas to progress to the semi-finals at the expense of Paraguay.
Prediction: Peru 1-0 Paraguay
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