Paraguay national football team

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Paraguay

Nickname(s)	Guaraníes, La Albirroja (White and red)
Association	Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol
Confederation	CONMEBOL (South America)
Head coach	Gerardo Martino
Captain	Denis Caniza
Most caps	Carlos Gamarra (110)
Top scorer	José Saturnino Cardozo (25)
Home stadium	Estadio Defensores del Chaco
FIFA code	PAR
FIFA ranking	22
Highest FIFA ranking	8 (March 2001)
Lowest FIFA ranking	103 (May 1995)
Elo ranking	11
Highest Elo ranking	5 (1954)
Lowest Elo ranking	44 (August 1962)
Home colours Away colours
First international
Paraguay 1 - 5 Argentina (Asunción, Paraguay; 11 March 1919)
Biggest win
Paraguay 7 - 0 Bolivia (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; 30 April 1949)
Biggest defeat
Argentina 8 - 0 Paraguay (Santiago, Chile; 20 October 1926
World Cup
Appearances	7 (First in 1930)
Best result	Round 2, 1986, 1998, 2002
Copa América
Appearances	33 (First in 1921)
Best result	Winners, 1953 and 1979

Olympic medal record
Men's Football
Silver	2004 Athens[1]	Team

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^[1].

Contents 1 History 1.1 The beginning (1900-1930) 1.2 First taste of success (1930-1970) 1.3 More continental success (1970-1990) 1.4 The golden generation (1990-2006) 1.5 The present 2 World Cup record 3 Olympic Games record[1] 4 Copa América record 5 Pan American Games record 6 Most Paraguay caps 7 Top Paraguay goalscorers 8 Current team status 8.1 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualification Standings 8.2 Recent, last and next games 8.3 Current squad 8.4 Recent Call Ups 9 See also 10 References 11 External links 12 Titles

[edit] History

[edit] The beginning (1900-1930)

Soon after the introduction of football in Paraguay by Williams Paats, the Liga Paraguaya de Futbol (today Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol) was created in 1906. The first national football team was organized in 1910 when an invitation by the Argentine club Hércules of Corrientes was received to play a friendly match. Members of that first nationall team where F. Melián, G. Almeida, A. Rodríguez, M. Barrios, P. Samaniego, J. Morín, Z. Gadea, D. Andreani, C. Mena Porta, B. Villamayor, M. Rojas and E. Erico. The match ended in a 0-0 draw.^[2]

Because of the increasing number of invitations to play matches and international tournaments, the Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol decided to officially create the national team and select the striped red and white jerseys that until this date remain as the official colours (taken from the Paraguayan flag). In late 1919 Paraguay accepted the invitation to play the 1921 Copa America and in order to prepare for that occasion a number of friendly matches were played between 1919 and the start of the tournament in 1921. The first of those friendly matches was a 5-1 loss against Argentina, and it marked the first international game by the Paraguayan national football team. When the 1921 Copa America finally arrived, Paraguay surprised everybody by beating then three-time South American champions Uruguay by 2-1, being this the first match in an official competition for the Paraguayan football team. Paraguay eventually finished fourth in the tournament and became a regular participant of the tournament for the next editions.

In 1930 Paraguay participated in the first World Cup, organized by Uruguay. In the first round, Paraguay debuted and lost to the United States (0-3), to then defeat Belgium (1-0) with a goal by Luis Vargas Peña. Only one team was to advance from the group stage, and the U.S. left Paraguay behind.

[edit] First taste of success (1930-1970)

After good participations in the Copa America tournaments of 1929, 1947 and 1949 (where Paraguay finished in second place), Paraguay was ready for their next World Cup competition.

The return to the World Cup was in 1950, where Paraguay faced Sweden and Italy in Group 3. Paraguay failed to advance to the next round after a 2-2 draw against Sweden and a 2-0 loss against Italy.

The first big success came in 1953 when Paraguay won the Copa America disputed in Peru. In their road to the championship, Paraguay defeated Chile (3-0), Bolivia (2-1) and Brazil (2-1); and tied against Ecuador (0-0), Peru (2-2) and Uruguay (2-2). Since Paraguay and Brazil were tied in points at the end of the tournament, a final playoff match was played between them, with Paraguay winning the final by 3-2. Key players of the campaign included Ángel Berni, Heriberto Herrera and Rubén Fernández. The coach was Manuel Fleitas Solich.^[3]

For the 1958 World Cup, Paraguay surprisingly qualified ahead of Uruguay (beating them 5-0 in the decisive game) with a team that contained a formidable attacking lineup with stars such as Juan Bautista Agüero, José 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.

[edit] More continental success (1970-1990)

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) in 1979 shored up Paraguay as a solid player on the continent.

The 1979 Copa América was won by Paraguay after finishing first in Group C (which had Uruguay and Ecuador as well) with two wins and two draws. In the semi-finals Paraguay defeated Brazil by an aggregate score of 4-3. In the finals, Paraguay defeated Chile by an aggregate score of 3-1 to claim its second continental crown. Players such as Julio Cesar Romero (Romerito), Carlos Alberto Kiese, Alicio Solalinde, Roberto Paredes, Hugo Ricardo Talavera and Eugenio Morel where an important part of the team, coached by Ranulfo Miranda.^[4]

Paraguay ended a 28-year absence from the World Cup in 1986 with a team starring Roberto Fernández in goal; Cesar Zavala, Rogelio Delgado and Juan Bautista Torales in defense; Jorge Amado Nunes and Vladimiro Chetinna in midfield; midfield playmaker Romerito and strikers Roberto Cabañas, Ramon Angel Maria Hicks and Rolando Chilavert (older brother of José Luis Chilavert). In first round matches, Paraguay defeated Iraq (1-0, goal Romerito) and then tied Mexico (1-1, goal Romerito) and Belgium (2-2, both goals Roberto Cabañas). They reached the second round where they were beaten 3-0 by England. ^[5]

[edit] The golden generation (1990-2006)

A drought followed once again, as Paraguay failed to reach Italy 1990 and U.S. 1994 World Cups.

In 1992, Paraguay won the South American Pre-Olympic tournament, which guaranteed a spot in the 1992 Summer Olympics football competition. In the Olympics, Paraguay finished second in its group and were eliminated by Ghana in the quarterfinals^[1]. The most important aspect of that Paraguay team was the emergence of new young players like Carlos Gamarra, Celso Ayala, José Luis Chilavert, Francisco Arce and José Cardozo, which became part of the "golden generation" that led Paraguay to three straight World Cups and good performances in continental competitions, establishing Paraguay as one of the top teams in South America along Brazil and Argentina.

This new generation of players helped end the World Cup drought in grand fashion, as the Albirroja reached the France 1998 World Cup by qualifying in second place in South America behind Argentina. The first round matches were against Bulgaria (0-0), Spain (0-0), and Nigeria (3-1; goals Celso Ayala, Miguel Ángel Benítez and José Cardozo). Paraguay qualified to the second round (Round of 16) to be defeated in a thrilling match against would-be World Champions France. France only scored through Laurent Blanc in the 114th minute, during the second half of overtime (making it the first golden goal scored in a World Cup). Paraguay's central defending duo (Carlos Gamarra and Celso Ayala) and goalkeeper José Luis Chilavert were selected for the all-star World Cup team.

Paraguay returned to the World’s greatest stage once more in the 2002 World Cup. In their first match, Paraguay tied South Africa 2-2 (goals: Roque Santa Cruz and Francisco Arce). Paraguay lost to Spain in the second game (1-3) and finally defeated Slovenia (3-1; goals Nelson Cuevas, twice, and Jorge Luis Campos) to qualify for the second round. Germany ended Paraguay’s dreams in the World Cup with an 88 minute goal.

In 2006, Paraguay qualified for its third World Cup in a row. This time, two early defeats against England and Sweden (both 0-1) sent the team home early. The only consolation was defeating Trinidad and Tobago during the last and final group game by 2-0.

[edit] The present

After the 2006 World Cup, Aníbal Ruiz resigned as head coach and Raúl Vicente Amarilla was assigned as the interim coach. In 2007, Argentine Gerardo "Tata" Martino was designated as head-coach. The former Newell's Old Boys (Rosario, Argentina) skipper's coaching career had blossomed in Paraguay where he formerly coached Libertad and Cerro Porteño. He was a clear and logical choice for the Paraguayan FA.

Paraguay's current squad is undergoing a transition because of the retirement of key players such as Carlos Gamarra, Francisco Arce , Celso Ayala, and goalkeeper José Luis Chilavert. Paraguay's under-19 side won the Milk Cup in 2002, 2003 and 2006, and players such as Nelson Valdez, Julio dos Santos, José Montiel and Óscar Cardozo are thought key to the re-building of the team.

Currently the squad coached by Gerardo "Tata" Martino is leading the standings in the qualification for the 2010 World Cup.

The usual starting line-up during the qualifiers has been with: Justo Villar at goal; Carlos Bonet, Darío Verón or Denis Caniza on the right, da Silva and Julio Caceres in the middle, Claudio Morel on the left. In the midfield, "Topo" Cáceres and Christian Riveros have been playing in the center, while Barreto and Jonathan Santana play on the outsides. Up front, it has been Salvador Cabañas, Roque Santa Cruz alternating with Óscar Cardozo and Nelson Haedo Valdez. Carlos Humberto Paredes is expected to return to the starting line-up in midfield in June.

[edit] World Cup record

• 1930 - Round 1
• 1934 - Did not enter
• 1938 - Did not enter
• 1950 - Round 1
• 1954 - Did not qualify
• 1958 - Round 1
• 1962 to 1982 - Did not qualify
• 1986 - Round 2
• 1990 - Did not qualify
• 1994 - Did not qualify
• 1998 - Round 2
• 2002 - Round 2
• 2006 - Round 1

[edit] Olympic Games record^[1]

• 1992 - Quarterfinals
• 2004 - Silver Medal (Second place)

[edit] Copa América record

1916 to 1920 - Did not enter 1921 - Fourth place 1922 - Runners-up 1923 - Third place 1924 - Third place 1925 - Third place 1926 - Fourth place 1927 - Withdrew 1929 - Runners-up 1935 - Withdrew 1937 - Fourth place 1939 - Third place 1941 - Withdrew 1942 - Fourth place 1945 - Withdrew 1946 - Third place 1947 - Runners-up 1949 - Runners-up 1953 - Winners

1955 - Fifth place 1956 - Fifth place 1957 - Withdrew 1959 - Third place 1959 - Fifth place 1963 - Runners-up 1967 - Fourth place 1975 - Round 1 1979 - Winners 1983 - Semifinals 1987 - Round 1 1989 - Fourth place 1991 - Round 1 1993 - Quarterfinals 1995 - Quarterfinals 1997 - Quarterfinals 1999 - Quarterfinals 2001 - Round 1 2004 - Quarterfinals 2007 - Quarterfinals

[edit] Pan American Games record

• 1951 - Fifth place
• 1955 to 1983 - Did not compete
• 1987 - Round 1
• 1991 - Did not compete
• 1995 - Quarterfinals
• 1999 - Did not compete
• 2003 - Round 1
• 2007 - Did not compete

[edit] Most Paraguay caps

Player	Paraguay career	Caps (Goals)
Carlos Gamarra	1993-2006	110 (12)
Roberto Acuña	1993-2006	97 (5)
Denis Caniza	1996-present	90 (1)
Celso Ayala	1993-2003	85 (6)
José Saturnino Cardozo	1991-2006	82 (25)
Roberto Fernández	1976-1989	78 (0)
Juan Bautista Torales	1979-1989	77 (1)
José Luis Chilavert	1989-2003	74 (8)
Estanislao Struway	1991-2002	74 (4)
Carlos Humberto Paredes	1998-present	74 (10)
Julio César Enciso	1995-2004	70 (2)

[edit] Top Paraguay goalscorers

Player	Paraguay career	Goals (Caps)
José Saturnino Cardozo	1991-2006	25 (82)
Roque Santa Cruz	1999-present	20 (61)
Saturnino Arrúa	1969-1980	13 (26)
Julio César Romero	1979-1986	13 (32)
Gerardo Rivas	1921-1926	12 (32)
Carlos Gamarra	1993-2006	12 (110)
Miguel Ángel Benítez	1996-1999	11 (29)
Juan Bautista Villalba	1945-1947	10 (22)
Aurelio González	1924-1937	10 (23)
Carlos Humberto Paredes	1998-present	10 (72)

[edit] Current team status

Paraguay is currently participating in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers.

[edit] 2010 FIFA World Cup
Qualification Standings

Team v • d • e Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts  Brazil 14 7 6 1 25 6 +19 27  Chile 14 8 2 4 23 14 +9 26  Paraguay 14 7 3 4 20 13 +7 24  Argentina 14 6 4 4 19 15 +4 22  Ecuador 14 5 5 4 18 20 −2 20  Uruguay 14 4 6 4 23 16 +7 18  Colombia 14 4 5 5 7 11 −4 17  Venezuela 14 5 2 7 17 24 −7 17  Bolivia 14 3 3 8 19 30 −11 12  Peru 14 1 4 9 7 29 −22 7   Argentina  – 3–0 5 Sep 2–0 1–0 1–1 1–1 10 Oct 2–1 4–0 Bolivia  6–1 – 10 Oct 0–2 0–0 9 Sep 4–2 3–0 2–2 0–1 Brazil  0–0 0–0 – 9 Sep 0–0 5–0 2–1 3–0 2–1 14 Oct Chile  1–0 4–0 0–3 – 4–0 14 Oct 0–3 2–0 0–0 5 Sep Colombia  2–1 2–0 0–0 10 Oct – 5 Sep 0–1 1–0 0–1 1–0 Ecuador  2–0 3–1 1–1 1–0 0–0 – 1–1 5–1 10 Oct 0–1 Paraguay  9 Sep 5 Sep 2–0 0–2 14 Oct 5–1 – 1–0 1–0 2–0 Peru  1–1 14 Oct 1–1 1–3 1–1 1–2 0–0 – 5 Sep 1–0 Uruguay  14 Oct 5–0 0–4 2–2 9 Sep 0–0 2–0 6–0 – 1–1 Venezuela  0–2 5–3 0–4 2–3 2–0 3–1 10 Oct 9 Sep 2–2 –

[edit] Recent, last and next games

• Recent games: see Paraguay national team 2008 and 2009 results.
• Last game:  Paraguay 1 – 2 Brazil  - Recife, Brazil - June 10, 2009 - WCQ2010.
• Next game: TBA

KEY: F = Friendly match; WCQ2010 = 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification

[edit] Current squad

The following players were called for the World Cup qualifier match against Uruguay on March 28, 2009.

No. Pos. Player DoB (Age) Caps Goals Club 1 GK Justo Villar 30 June 1977 65 0 Real Valladolid 22 GK Aldo Bobadilla 20 April 1976 17 0 Independiente Medellín GK Diego Barreto 16 July 1981 2 0 Sol de América 2 DF Darío Verón 16 July 1979 22 0 UNAM Pumas DF Julio César Cáceres (captain) 5 October 1979 57 2 Boca Juniors 5 DF Julio Manzur 22 June 1981 26 0 Libertad 21 DF Aureliano Torres 16 June 1982 22 1 San Lorenzo DF Carlos Bonet 2 October 1977 55 0 Cruz Azul DF Pedro Benítez 23 March 1981 10 0 UANL Tigres 14 DF Paulo da Silva 1 February 1980 61 2 Toluca 4 DF Denis Caniza 29 August 1974 88 0 Olimpia DF Miguel Samudio 24 August 1986 1 0 Libertad 6 MF Enrique Vera 10 March 1979 23 1 LDU Quito 8 MF Edgar Barreto 15 July 1984 44 2 Reggina MF Osvaldo Martínez 8 April 1986 7 0 Monterrey 16 MF Christian Riveros 16 October 1982 22 3 Cruz Azul 11 MF Jonathan Santana 19 October 1981 12 0 San Lorenzo 15 MF Víctor Cáceres 25 March 1985 14 0 Libertad MF Sergio Aquino 21 September 1979 7 0 Libertad MF Eduardo Ledesma 7 August 1985 3 0 Lanús 17 MF Marcelo Estigarribia 21 September 1987 5 0 Le Mans MF Rodrigo Burgos 21 June 1989 1 0 Cerro Porteño 10 FW Salvador Cabañas 5 August 1980 39 8 América 18 FW Nelson Haedo Valdez 28 November 1983 32 8 Borussia Dortmund 7 FW Óscar Cardozo 20 May 1983 24 3 Benfica FW Edgar Benítez 8 November 1987 6 1 Pachuca FW Jorge Achucarro 6 November 1981 8 0 Atlas

[edit] Recent Call Ups

The following players have also been called up to the Paraguay squad in 2008.

Goalkeepers

Name	Date of birth	Club	Caps (goals)	Most Recent Call up
Derlis Gomez	November 2, 1972	Nacional	8 (0)	v. Japan, 27 May 2008
Joel Silva	January 13, 1989	Guaraní	? (?)	v. South Africa, 26 March 2008

Defenders

Name	Date of birth	Club	Caps (goals)	Most Recent Call up
Claudio Morel	2 February 1978	Boca Juniors	42 0(0)
Edgar Balbuena	November 20, 1980	Libertad	? (?)	v. Japan, 27 May 2008
Delio Toledo	October 2, 1976	Kayserispor	? (?)	v. South Africa, 26 March 2008
Reinaldo Román	March 23, 1984	Sportivo Luqueño	1 (0)	v. South Africa, 26 March 2008
Marcos Cáceres	May 5, 1986	Racing Club	0 (0)	v. Honduras, 6 February 2008
Enrique Meza	November 28, 1985	Nacional	1 (0)	v. Honduras, 6 February 2008

Midfielders

Name	Date of birth	Club	Caps (goals)	Most Recent Call up
Edgar González	4 October 1979	Olimpia	13 0(0)
Domingo Salcedo	9 November 1983	Colo Colo	06 0(0)
Jorge Brítez	February 8, 1981	Cerro Porteño	? (?)	v. Japan, 27 May 2008
Luis Cáceres	April 16, 1988	Cerro Porteño	2 (0)	v. Japan, 27 May 2008

Strikers

Name	Date of birth	Club	Caps (goals)	Most Recent Call up
Roque Santa Cruz	16 August 1981	Manchester City	61 (20)
Nelson Cuevas	10 January 1980	Universidad de Chile	41 0(6)
Dante López	16 August 1983	Pumas UNAM	20 0(3)
Julio Aguilar	July 1, 1986	Tigres UANL	1 (0)	v. Japan, 27 May 2008
Fabio Escobar	February 15, 1982	Nacional	? (?)	v. Japan, 27 May 2008
Cristian Bogado	January 7, 1987	Municipal Iquique	? (?)	v. Japan, 27 May 2008
Nelson Romero	November 18, 1984	Libertad	? (?)	v. Honduras, 6 February 2008
Pablo Zeballos	March 4, 1986	Cruz Azul	1 (0)	v. Brazil, 15 June 2008
Manuel Maciel	February 12, 1984	Libertad	1 (0)	v. Honduras, 6 February 2008
Luis Paéz	December 19, 1989	Sporting	0 (0)	v. Honduras, 6 February 2008

[edit] See also

• Paraguay women's national football team
• Paraguay national under-20 football team
• Paraguay national futsal team
• Football in Paraguay
• 2008 in Paraguayan football

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official site of the Paraguayan Football Association
• RSSSF archive of results 1919-2004
• RSSSF archive of most capped players and highest goalscorers
• Planet World Cup archive of results in the World Cup
• Planet World Cup archive of squads in the World Cup
• Planet World Cup archive of results in the World Cup qualifiers
• Albirroja Fansite (in Spanish)
• Paraguayan Football Site

[edit] Titles

Preceded by 1949 Brazil	South American Champions 1953 (First title)	Succeeded by 1955 Argentina
Preceded by 1975 Peru	South American Champions 1979 (Second title)	Succeeded by 1983 Uruguay

v • d • e Football in Paraguay Paraguayan Football Association National teams Paraguay · Women's League system First Division · Second Division · Third Division List of clubs · Paraguayan football derby · Footballers · Managers · Stadiums · Footballer of the Year

v • d • e International football FIFA · World Cup · Confederations Cup · U-20 World Cup · U-17 World Cup · Olympics · Asian Games · All-Africa Games · Pan American Games · Minor Tournaments · World Rankings · Player of the Year · Teams · Competitions · Federations · Codes Asia AFC – Asian Cup Africa CAF – Africa Cup of Nations North America CONCACAF – Gold Cup South America CONMEBOL – Copa América Oceania OFC – Nations Cup Europe UEFA – European Championship Non-FIFA NF-Board – Viva World Cup

v • d • e National football teams of South America (CONMEBOL) Argentina · Bolivia · Brazil · Chile · Colombia · Ecuador · Paraguay · Peru · Uruguay · Venezuela

v • d • e 2006 FIFA World Cup finalists Champions Italy Runners-up France Third place Germany Fourth place Portugal Eliminated in quarter-finals Argentina · Brazil · England · Ukraine Eliminated in round of 16 Australia · Ecuador · Ghana · Mexico · Netherlands · Spain · Sweden · Switzerland Eliminated in group stage Angola · Costa Rica · Côte d'Ivoire · Croatia · Czech Republic · Iran · Japan · Korea Republic · Paraguay · Poland · Saudi Arabia · Serbia & Montenegro · Togo · Trinidad and Tobago · Tunisia · United States

v • d • e Copa América winners 14 titles  Argentina (1921 · 1925 · 1927 · 1929 · 1937 · 1941 · 1945 · 1946 · 1947 · 1955 · 1957 · 1959 · 1991 · 1993)  Uruguay (1916 · 1917 · 1920 · 1923 · 1924 · 1926 · 1935 · 1942 · 1956 · 1959 · 1967 · 1983 · 1987 · 1995) 8 titles  Brazil (1919 · 1922 · 1949 · 1989 · 1997 · 1999 · 2004 · 2007) 2 titles  Paraguay (1953 · 1979)  Peru (1939 · 1975) 1 title  Bolivia (1963)  Colombia (2001)