South American surprise package Paraguay will face what will be their most intimidating test at the 2026 FIFA World Cup as they face a France team who are looking devastating despite not having reached their full stride in this tournament. This is a clash between South American grit and French flair, as Philadelphia prepares itself for a memorable Round of 16 encounter.
For the game, here we present our preview and prediction.
When Paraguay made it to the last 32 as one of the best third-placed teams in the competition, not many gave them a chance to get past four-time champions Germany. On paper, the Germans were a much better and more well-rounded side, expected to simply cruise past Gustavo Alfaro’s men.
But games are hardly won on paper. And Paraguay gave us another example of that after their stunning performance against Germany. They took the lead with some slick interplay and held firm despite conceding the equaliser early in the second half, continuing to frustrate the Germans with resolute defending and some inspired goalkeeping to take the game to penalties.
In the shootout, it was their goalkeeper, Orlando Gill, who wrote his name into Paraguayan football folklore with his brilliant performance, saving two penalties before Jonathan Tah skied his shot to spark jubilant scenes in the Paraguay dugout.
Although it is only their second World Cup campaign, Paraguay have made it to the knockouts on both occasions, having made the quarter-finals in 2010. Oh, how they would love to make it back there once again!
They will be boosted by the return of midfielder Diego Gómez, who comes back from a one-game ban for two yellow cards in the group stage. However, La Albirroja will still be without the services of key defender Omar Alderete, who suffered a knee injury in their final group game against Australia. The rest of the squad have no injury or suspension concerns.
Their opponents, France, on the other hand, are doing proper justice to the tag of favourites that was bestowed upon them at the start of the tournament. They have blown teams out of the water, yet it looks like they have barely moved past second gear.
Les Bleus are bottom in almost every metric. They do not run a lot (mid-30s in terms of sprints), they do not hustle for the ball a lot, and neither do they cover a lot of ground (44th out of 48 teams in distance covered). Yet, they have some of the most dangerous and outrageously devastating attackers, which reflects in the chances they have created and the accuracy with which they have converted said chances. Kylian Mbappé has six goals and two assists, Michael Olise is running the creative show with five assists, while Ousmane Dembélé has four goals and two assists. Bradley Barcola has chipped in with two goals as well, rounding out the threatening French attack.
A lot of France’s exploits have to do with coach Didier Deschamps, who, in his final tournament as France boss, has finally ceded the control and pragmatism he has been notorious for, allowing his attackers to take the reins and solve problems on the fly — and it is working like a treat.
However, they have been dealt an injury blow right on the eve of kick-off, with vice-captain Aurélien Tchouaméni ruled out of the game due to a thigh injury that is severe enough to keep him out of this game. Forward Marcus Thuram, meanwhile, continues to nurse his way to fitness from a niggling calf injury that has severely limited his availability in this tournament.
Paraguay will once again rely on the tried and tested method that yielded them so much success against Germany, but with a France side that is miles and leagues better than the German side they faced, they will have to be mentally strong, because the French only need one mistake, and they punish brutally.
We believe that France are the overwhelming favourites to win this match in convincing fashion to make their way into the quarter-finals.
Score Prediction: Paraguay 0–4 France
Venue: Philadelphia Stadium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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