Paraguay arrive at the CONMEBOL Copa America with familiar faces and big dreams

Paraguay arrive at the CONMEBOL Copa America in Brazil in search of their third title with a side filled with familiar faces for followers of South American football. The strong squad will look to make history this year against the best on the continent.

Let us begin with the captain. As well as his role as leader for the albirroja, strong central defender Gustavo Gómez also wears the captain’s armband for Brazilian giants Palmeiras, the side who won the last Copa Libertadores.

His central defensive partner is West Ham United’s Fabián Balbuena, another strong, committed leader with experience in Brazil playing for Palmeiras and Corinthians. Naturalized Paraguayan defender David Martinez and Roberto Rojas, both of River Plate in Argentina, are also very effective defensive options.

Moving into midfield, Junior Alonso is a key man for Atletico Mineiro while Piris da Motta who currently plays in Turkey has experience performing at a high level for Flamengo and San Lorenzo.

Twins Óscar (midfielder) and Ángel Romero (forward) both play together in Argentina regularly at San Lorenzo and can link effectively to creat openings while striker Gabriel Ávalos also plays in Argentina with Argentinos Juniors.

Argentina has proven to be a popular destination for Paraguayan talent. Omar Alderete played for Gimnasia and Huracán in Buenos Aires before signing for Hertha Berlin in Germany while Miguel Almiron was a star for Lanús before moving to Newcastle via Atlanta United.

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Paraguay finished runner-up in 2011, losing to Uruguay in the final. In 2019 they were beaten by hosts and eventual champions Brazil on penalties in the quarterfinals. They won their most recent title in 1979 with their only other win coming in 1953.

Paraguay arrive at the Copa America having drawn to Uruguay and lost to Brazil in their most recent World Cup qualifiers. This means they currently sit in sixth position in the CONMEBOL qualifying table, one point behind Uruguay.

Their Copa America campaign begins on 14 June at Estádio Olí­mpico in Goiânia against Bolivia. They will also face Argentina, Uruguay and Chile in Group A.