On Saturday, 8th June, in a friendly match, the Peru national team will face the Paraguay national team. The hosts have an unbeaten streak of three matches across all competitions, having defeated the Dominican Republic 4-1 in March, while the Tricolours have yet to make an appearance in 2024.
The match will take place in Lima at the Monumental Stadium.
The change in head coach has instilled optimism among Peru fans ahead of the Copa America starting at the end of June. Jorge Fossati has won just two matches in his new role but has ended a seven-match winless streak across all competitions. The "Los Incas" have netted six goals in their last two games, one more than in their previous twelve encounters across all competitions.
In March, the hosts thrashed the Dominican Republic 4-1, thanks to goals from Peña, Castillo, Cordova, and Guerrero, and before that, they easily defeated Nicaragua (2-0). It's important to note that it's been over a year since the Red-and-Whites last beat a team from the CONMEBOL federation, securing a 1-0 victory against Bolivia in a friendly match in November 2022. The Peru national team performs well at home, suffering only three defeats in their last 18 home matches across all competitions.
It's been over half a year since Paraguay last played an official match (a 0-1 defeat to Colombia), but the break might have been necessary for this team, as they've won just one of their last six matches. During this period, the Paraguayans have particularly struggled in attack, failing to score in five of those games. Despite all the setbacks, the Tricolours sit in seventh place in the World Cup qualifying standings, just two points behind Brazil.
When Paraguay scores first, the opponent is in for a tough time: the South Americans have won four consecutive matches across all competitions after opening the scoring and have not conceded a goal in any of those encounters. It's important to note that Garnero's team has not won any of their last six away matches across all competitions.
In the previous 11 encounters with Peru, the visitors have not won, and the Tricolours' last away triumph in head-to-head meetings with the "Incas" was in a friendly match in February 2009 (0-1).
After the head coach change, the Peru national team is in excellent form, unbeaten in their last three matches. In contrast, Paraguay hasn't played for over half a year and didn't please their fans with results in the autumn. Moreover, the Tricolours have historically performed poorly against the "Incas" in away head-to-head matches, so it makes sense to bet on a home victory with a handicap of 0.
The Peruvians have scored seven goals in their last three games, but the visitors boast a solid defence, having conceded no more than one goal per game in their previous seven matches. I am betting on a total of less than 2.5 goals in the match.
The Peru national team, with the support of their home crowd, will play aggressively and attack more. I am betting on a win for the "Incas" in corners.
It's unlikely that players will engage in dangerous tackles in a friendly match, so I am confidently betting on a total of under 3.5 yellow cards.
I predict a 1-0 victory for the Peru national team.
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