In the early hours of Friday morning, Paraguay and Peru go head-to-head in their opening match in qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.
Paraguay form guideThe home team’s recent international form has been poor, as a 2-0 home win over Nicaragua last time out ended a four-game winless run, having also suffered three straight losses. The game against Nicaragua was another low-scoring game for Paraguay, as six of their last seven matches have produced under 2.5 goals.
Paraguay’s recent record in World Cup qualifiers has been poor, as they have won just once in their last nine games in qualifying, including seven defeats in the poor run.
Their recent home form in qualifying has not been much better, as Paraguay have won just two of their last 11 qualifiers on home soil. Their recent home World Cup qualifiers have been relatively low-scoring, with under 2.5 goals scored in five of their previous seven qualifying games in front of their own fans.
Peru form guideLike their hosts, the Inca's international form hasn’t been great, as Peru has won just once in their previous four games. A 4-1 defeat in Japan last time out ended a run of low-scoring games, as their previous five international matches had all produced under 2.5 goals.
Peru enjoyed a decent qualification campaign last time out, finishing in the play-off spot and only losing out on a place at the World Cup courtesy of a penalty kick defeat against Australia in the play-offs.
Their recent record in World Cup qualifying is solid, as Peru has won four of the last six qualifiers, suffering just one loss in the strong run. Their recent qualifiers have been low-scoring, with under 2.5 goals scored in ten of their previous 12 games in qualifying.
What am I backing?This game is a good chance for both teams to make a winning start to their World Cup qualifying campaign. However, I am expecting a tight encounter, so I am backing under 2.5 goals scored.
