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End of the game:
Key moments
Substitution for Paraguay: Clever Ferreira comes onto the pitch, replacing Gustavo Gómez. A great save by Viscarra! He deals with Caballero's shot without too much trouble. Bolivia survives. La Verde's morale took a hit after the missed penalty.
What a save by Olveira! He sticks out a hand low down to stop a shot aimed right at the left post, and the post itself keeps the ball out on the goal line. Unbelievable miss by Miguelito. PARAGUAY SURVIVES—Penalty missed.
Fernández fires a shot from the edge of the box that lands in the hands of the Paraguayan goalkeeper. Bolivia came very close to pulling one back. Paraguay got off the hook. Omar Alderete had been shown a yellow card in the 58th minute and came close to being sent off during the final play.
Diego Medina is signaling for a substitution! The Bolivian full-back felt a sharp pain in the back of his right thigh and cannot continue. It looks like a nasty injury. Substitutions for Paraguay: Mauricio and Morales off; Arce and Sosa on.
Yellow card for Alderete (Paraguay). A brilliant save by Viscarra! Enciso dribbles his way deep into the danger zone and fires a shot toward the near post, but the goalkeeper deflects it out for a corner. Bolivia survives. We’ve reached the hour mark.
Yellow card for Roberto Morales (Paraguay); it is the first of the match. Medical staff come on to attend to Hector Cuellar, who has a visible cut on his cheekbone. Substitution for Bolivia: Maraude replaces Fernández.
Morales lays the ball back to Enciso, who turns at the edge of the box and spreads it wide to Almirón; positioned at the corner of the area, Almirón unleashes a left-footed shot toward the far post, beating Viscarra. Goal for Paraguay. For the Guaraníes, Villasanti has come on to replace Cubas.
Let's take another look at the first goal of the match:
Halftime:
Paraguay dictated the terms of play and consistently threatened the opposing goal, though Bolivia defended very well to close out the first half. Miguelito had three chances to equalize. Miguel Almirón scored the match's only goal.
Great play by Alderete! He holds his ground and closes down the angle on Miguelito during the counterattack; Miguelito tries to cut inside for a left-footed shot, but it crashes into the defender's foot. One additional minute will be played here in the United States.
Enciso takes a shot that Cuéllar saves. It was a brilliant move by the Ipswich player, who beat two defenders with a pirouette before driving toward Viscarra's goal. Whenever Paraguay found their rhythm in the match, they caused their opponent serious trouble.
Miguelito loses possession under pressure from Almirón and Mauricio. The Santos number seven is carrying the team on his back as Bolivia puts up a real fight. It’s the first big chance for the Bolivians! Paraguay is let off the hook.
"La Verde" survives! They are in serious trouble: a total onslaught by the Guaraní side inside the Bolivian box. Alfaro calls for the pressing lines to push higher up the pitch, with Enciso and Diego Gómez giving their all to win the ball back in the attacking third. Yellow card for Cuellar (Bolivia).
Goal by Miguel Almirón! Paraguay takes the lead in Washington! A high ball from Diego Gómez played behind the defense; Mauricio brings it down with a header, and Almirón puts the ball in the net.
Bolivia sits back in a mid-block. Paraguay works the ball out from the back, with a long pass from Gustavo Gómez that comes to nothing due to an offside call against Almirón. Once the play concluded, Alfaro took the opportunity to give Cubas some instructions aimed at injecting more dynamism into the team's play.
A brilliant save by Olveira! A mid-range shot from Melgar, set up by Miguelito, is tipped out for a corner by the Paraguayan goalkeeper with his fingertips. A frenetic start for Bolivia. Alfaro looks very annoyed with his players' attitude.
Arroyo sends in a cross from the flank, which the Paraguayan goalkeeper gathers in two stages. Bolivia is dominating the opening of the match. Fernández plays a long ball looking for Villamil, but Maidana heads it away. Paraguay needs to show more aggression when challenging for the ball.
The game started:
Friends, welcome to the international break. We are ready for the thrilling South American clash between Bolivia and Paraguay. We look forward to a great match between the two teams—ongoing projects aiming to qualify for the 2030 World Cup.
Oscar Villegas:
In the previous cycle, La Verde came within a whisker of reaching the 2026 World Cup, but lost 2–1 to Iraq in the final playoff match.
“Having come so close means we simply have to make it next time,” he emphasized.
“I don’t know what system Paraguay will field—and sometimes it’s better not to say, so as not to give the opponent a chance to adjust their tactics. In fact, we will try to implement the best approach we’ve been studying and analyzing against Paraguay.”
“Focused on achieving the goal: reaching the next World Cup”—those were the words of head coach Óscar Villegas during the press conference he held this Wednesday morning in Santa Cruz, ahead of the friendlies against Paraguay and Argentina in preparation for the 2030 World Cup qualifiers.
Villegas met with the media for the first time before traveling to the United States for the match against Paraguay—scheduled for Sunday, September 27, in Washington—and the subsequent game against Argentina on Wednesday the 30th in Córdoba.
Gustavo Alfaro confirmed he would continue at the helm of the Paraguay national team following their impressive performance at the 2026 World Cup. The Argentine manager renewed his contract with the Albirroja leadership and surprised everyone by revealing that this cycle would mark the final chapter of his coaching career.
Speaking at a press conference ahead of the upcoming FIFA international friendlies, Alfaro commented on this final stint: "I told my agent: 'Listen to everyone, but don't talk to anyone, because the only one I'm talking to is Paraguay.'"
The 64-year-old Argentine coach reiterated his reasons for extending his tenure with the South American squad: "I tell people this is the last one—it really is the last one—but considering everything we’ve experienced with Paraguay since we arrived—the qualifying campaign and the World Cup itself—I felt there was still more work to be done."
Paraguay News:
Paraguay’s head coach, the Argentine Gustavo Alfaro, announced plans to hold a short training camp with young domestic players in the coming weeks to assess them and see if they can be groomed for the national team.
"In the week leading up to the Superclásico, I’m going to select a preliminary squad of 22 players—aged 16 to 23—to bring to Ypané to work with me. I want to evaluate them, gauge their abilities, and see what they bring to the table, so I can figure out how to work with these young players and bring them up to the level of the current squad," Alfaro stated during a press conference in Washington on Saturday.
- Bolivia has an average of 53.33% of the games with over 2.5 goals and 46.67% of the games with under 2.5 goals. In the last 15 games.
- Bolivia score 6 goals in the last 5 games.
- Paraguay have an average of 40% of the games with over 2.5 goals and 60% of the games with under 2.5 goals. In the last 15 games.
- Paraguay score 3 goals in the last 5 games.
2026:
In the Round of 32, Paraguay played Germany; after a 1-1 draw after extra time, Paraguay defeated Germany 4-3 on penalties to reach the Round of 16. Paraguay would then get eliminated by France in the Round of 16 by losing 1-0 in regular time.
Bolivia were a win away from qualifying for the 2026 World Cup as the team was in the FIFA inter-confederation playoffs last March. Bolivia defeated Suriname 2-1 in the semifinal, but in the final qualifier, they lost 2-1 to Iraq in Mexico.
The sides have met seven times previously, with the home side winning 2, the away side winning 3, and 2 draws. In those meetings the teams averaged 1.6 home goals and 1.4 away goals.Paraguay’s lack of attacking consistency (0.6 goals per game last 5) versus Bolivia’s recent defensive fragility (2.2 goals against per game last 5) points to a cagey game where chances could be limited. Paraguay face 3.2 shots on target per game recently while Bolivia face 1.6, suggesting Paraguay have been exposed to more on-target shots.
Bolivia come in on L-L-L-W-W, scoring 1.2 goals per game in the last 5 while conceding 2.2 in that same stretch, which makes them look quite leaky recently. Paraguay are L-D-D-W-L, scoring 0.6 goals per game in the last 5 and conceding 1.2 in that period, although their season goals against per game is a solid 0.7, so recent form and season form pull in different directions.
Paraguay struggle for goals, with just 0.6 goals per game in the last 5 and a season average of 0.9, and they have faced 3.2 shots on target per game recently.
The model leans to a draw but only slightly, so this really could go either way.
Led by a brace from Miguel Almirón, Paraguay defeated Bolivia 2–0 at Audi Field Stadium in Washington, D.C.
During the current FIFA international window, Paraguay faced Colombia on Friday, October 2, in Harrison, New Jersey. Meanwhile, the Bolivian squad will play three warm-up matches: following the clash with La Albirroja, they faced Argentina in Córdoba on Wednesday, September 30, and wrap up their tour on Sunday, October 4, against Gambia in Santa Cruz.