Germany vs Paraguay | FIFA World Cup- Round Of 32 | Preview and Predictions

Four-time Champions Germany will take on Paraguay in this Round of 32 fixture in Boston. The Germans will look to bounce back from that shocking defeat vs Ecuador, while Paraguay approach this game full of confidence and belief that they can compete against any side in the world.

Here is our Preview and Predictions for the game.

FIFA WC26 | R32: GER vs PAR | 02:00 IST, 30 June, 2026

Germany have finally broken their hoodoo of not getting past the group stages of the World Cup for the first time since 2014, but their journey has been far from smooth in this edition of the tournament so far.

After kickstarting their campaign in the best way possible with a 7-1 drubbing of Curacao, they were pushed hard by Ivory Coast and were lucky to have not lost that game on account of the profligacy shown in front of goal by the Ivorians. It took a late double from Denis Undav to get them the three points and the ticket to the next round.

If the performance against Ivory Coast was a warning shot, they did not heed that because they fell to a stunning defeat against Ecuador despite having taken the lead as early as in the second minute of the game courtesy of Leroy Sane before losing the plot in the second half to eventually lose the game.

Julian Nagelsmann’s side have shown moments and phases in the tournament why they are so highly-touted to make it into the deeper stages of the tournament, but they have not translated that into a full 90-minute performance.

The midfield duo of Felix Nmecha and Aleksandar Pavlovic have not been at their best, failing to provide adequate cover to a defense that is already looking shady following an ankle to Nico Schlotterbeck, who is currently their best centre-back. Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz are still stuck in the shadows of their ineffective club seasons, while the return of Manuel Neuer from retirement has only served to disrupt the team further, with his performances not exuding much confidence either.

However, there are positives. Undav has been among the goals, full-back Nathaniel Brown has been a breath of fresh air with his role of inverted full-back, allowing the side a new layer of attacking variety. Schlotterbeck was also a formidable presence at the heart of defense until his injury.

 Paraguay have shown a massive improvement in their game after a rather poor start to their campaign in that defeat to the USA. They have gone back to their basics and relied on their defensive prowess, as shown in back-t0-back clean sheets against Turkiye and Australia to confirm their spot in the knockouts as one of the best third-placed side in the competition.

While Paraguay will be massively boosted with the return of Miguel Almiron from his one game suspension, they will also be hampered by the fact that midfielder Diego Gomez will miss this game on account of receiving 2 yellow cards, thereby serving a one-match ban. His absence is a big blow given that he is the conduit for Paraguay in the middle of the park, acting as a link between his side’s defense and attack while also being proficient in set-piece delivery too.

Apart from Gomez, defender Omar Alderete is also nursing an injury and will be closely monitored ahead of the game. The hope is that they get the ball as quickly as possible to the likes of Almiron and Julio Enciso to run at the German backline and create attacking opportunities to test Neuer at any given point.

This clash will be a classic clash between Germany’s array of attacking talent against Paraguay’s defensive resolve. While Paraguay will definitely make life difficult for the Germans, we still believe that Germany are the favourites to win this game and qualify for the Round of 16.

Score Predictions: Germany 3-1 Paraguay.

Venue: Boston Stadium, Foxborough.