Paraguay vs Australia Predictions

• Australia did better than Paraguay against both USA and Turkiye
• A draw would see both teams through to the last-32
• The Socceroos would finish above Paraguay in second place if it finished all square

Draw will do for both in Group D

A draw may suit both teams in Santa Clara when Paraguay and Australia face off for the chance to finish second behind the USA in Group D. La Albirroja revived their World Cup fortunes with a determined, defensive display against Turkiye at the same venue on Saturday, digging in for a 1-0 victory when down to 10 men.

They scored the fastest goal of the tournament so far when Matias Galarza smashed home a shot from outside the box, but his Atlanta United teammate Miguel Almiron will now be suspended for the idiotic red-card offence of covering his mouth.

The ex-Newcastle star will be missed for this match against an Australian side who were sloppy in Seattle against the cohesive co-hosts. Tony Popovic blatantly got his selection wrong when he left out Nestory Irankunda and Connor Metcalfe, the Socceroos’ scorers against Turkiye.

Popovic must pick the right players

Their play drastically improved after Irankunda and Sassuolo winger Cristian Volpato were introduced in the second half, but the damage was done by then.  Expect a better showing if Popovic gets some pace and penetration back into his side.

Australia are the higher-ranked team and had better results than Paraguay against both other group opponents but are longer in the betting – probably because they lost two friendlies against South American sides in November.

The relevance of those games to this crucial contest seems pretty minimal and the price difference makes the Aussies good value in the Draw no Bet market, which has to be taken into consideration given the group situation.