USA lost 2-1 to Germany in their final warm-up match
Paraguay have won three of their last four matches
Recommended bet: Draw @ 23/10 with LiveScore Bet
USA are ready to host their second World Cup and Mauricio Pochettino’s side are in a favourable group.
Paraguay are up first, with clashes against Australia and Turkey to follow, and an opening win over the South Americans will give USA an excellent chance to make progress.
Paraguay return to the World Cup after a 16-year absence. They may have finished sixth in the qualifying table, but Gustavo Alfaro’s men only lost four of their 18 matches, defeating Brazil and Uruguay along the way.
The latest USA vs Paraguay odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Team news
The only doubt for Pochettino is defender Chris Richards. He has been struggling with an ankle injury and it remains to be seen whether he will be available for this opening match against Paraguay.
Pochettino’s biggest dilemma will be who to unleash up front. Christian Pulisic has been USA’s talisman for a few years now, but he did not enjoy the best of spells between January and May at club level.
For Paraguay, Julio Enciso suffered a thigh injury in the friendly victory over Nicaragua and could well miss this match.
Aside from that, Alfaro has plenty of options to work with.
The stats
The USA have won their three previous meetings with Paraguay dating back to March 2011.
Both teams scored in the latest meeting between the nations last November when the friendly finished 2-1 in favour of Pochettino’s men.
USA defeated Paraguay 3-0 at the inaugural World Cup in 1930, but have won only once against South American nations at the tournament since then (2-1 against Colombia in 1994).
Paraguay reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup on their last appearance in 2010, losing to eventual winners Spain.
Both teams have scored in seven of USA’s previous eight international matches, while four of Paraguay last seven games has seen both teams finding the back of the net.
USA have scored in 10 of their previous 12 World Cup finals matches, only failing to score against England (2022) and Germany (2014).
The latest USA vs Paraguay odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Prediction
Pochettino has a fine squad at his disposal and reaching the last 16 this summer should be the aim for USA.
Paraguay will be tough opposition, however, especially after suffering just four losses in qualifying, while only Ecuador conceded fewer than Paraguay’s 10 goals across 18 matches.
Considering all of that, this could be a tight game in Los Angeles and both teams would probably settle for a draw first up.
Expect both teams to score, but a stalemate could well be on the cards.
Score Prediction: USA 1-1 Paraguay
