Venezuela vs Paraguay prediction: SOUTH AMERICA: World Championship – Qualification betting tips on match 2023-09-12 22:00.
After a four match unbeaten run to begin his Venezuela reign (W3, D1), Fernando Batista finally lost his first game in the hot seat, as his side went down 1-0 against Colombia in their FIFA World Cup qualification (WCQ) opener. In spite of defeat, Basista said his side “played a good game”, and they should be ready to transfer that form into this clash, as the defiant Venezuela boss said he was “already thinking about Paraguay” after the match.
Instead of thinking about the opposition, Batista would be wise to think up a way of improving upon Venezuela’s dismal recent run in WCQ matches (W2, D1, L12). Unsurprisingly, Venezuela footed up the last CONMEBOL WCQ table with a lowly ten-point haul, a record that simply improving upon would be an achievement for a nation who have never reached a World Cup finals.
While Paraguay have graced the World Cup stage on eight separate occasions, their last appearance came in 2010, something boss Guillermo Barros Schelotto will be eager to put right in his first full WCQ cycle. Paraguay made a respectable start to that quest with a 0-0 draw against Peru in their qualification opener, but they’ll hope for better here against a nation they beat home and away in WCQ for Qatar 2022.
In fact, in WCQ away matches against Venezuela, Paraguay hold a mightily impressive record (W6, D1, L1), but don’t expect a landslide victory as the last two have come via a 1-0 scoreline. Goals in this fixture have been at a premium of late, with only one of the last eight games seeing more than two goals, which would hint that the opening goal here could be key in deciding who gets off the mark in search of a place at the 2026 World Cup.
Players to watch: Venezuela may look to Darwin MachĂs for inspiration, but they may have to wait for it given he’s scored the game’s second goal on five of his last six international scoring appearances. Vying against him for a potential second goal, Paraguay’s Kaku scored the decisive strike the last time these two sides met and three of his last four international goals have also served as the game’s second.
Hot streak: The designated away side has scored exactly once in the last six H2Hs.