Paraguay 2-0 Uruguay Player Ratings: Paraguay mark a huge step to the World Cup after a comfortable victory over Uruguay

Paraguay plays Uruguay in the 15th matchday of the CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifiers at the Defensores del Chaco Stadium to get one step closer to returning to the prestigious FIFA World Cup 2026. Though both teams have the same points, the goal difference separates them in the points table, and the result today could potentially determine the final table of the match.

The CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifiers match began with great vigor, and from the very first minute, it was getting heated. Initially, it was evident that the Uruguay National Team had complete control of the match, as they made constant attacks from both wings. However, the Paraguay defenders were solid like a wall and defended the ball pretty well. After some minutes, it almost felt like the only focus of the Uruguayan players was to attack, and the hosts properly countered this mistake. They patiently defended and pressed hard, and when they saw the right opportunity, they moved to attack. Ensico saw a chance and attempted to cross the ball, which was headed by Ugarte in an attempt to clear. However, this went straight to Galarza, who connected the ball properly to register his name in the scorecard. The first half continued with midfielders and defenders dominating, and there were no such real chances later until the very final minute of the first half, where Alderete doubled the lead of his team, which was called offside even though it was not.

The second half was quite boring, with both teams once again not creating any chances. Though there were attempts in the attack, most of them went off target. In the very end, a mistake by Ronald Araujo led to the host winning a penalty, which was converted by Julio Enciso, securing the win for Paraguay, and at full time the score was 2-0.

Here are the Paraguay vs Uruguay Player Ratings

Paraguay National Football Team Player Ratings vs Uruguay Football Team

Goalkeeper

Gatito Fernandez - 7/10

Was not challenged for the vast majority of the first half, except a few routine saves and clearances. Punched the ball away from danger whenever the opponents took set pieces

Defenders

Junior Alonso - 6/10

Made some very important clearances from inside the box when the opponents tried to cross from the wings. However while looking to other aspects he was not at par. Had a terrible passing accuracy. All the long balls made by the player either went to the opponents or to no-mans land.

Omar Alderete - 6/10

Covered the opponents exceptionally well inside his box. Made some tackles and clearances and had a good role in keeping Sanabria silent for a long time. in the very dying minutes of the initial half, he shook the net but to his dismay it was ruled offside even though he was clearly onside.

Gustavo Gomez - 6/10

Kept the Uruguayan team attackers away from making moves inside the ball. Properly intercepted the balls to keep the danger away. Was the first one to clear the balls whenever the opponents took freekicks. Had a brilliant opputtunity to score the second goal but the attempt hit the crossbar.

Juan Caceres - 6/10

Was very good in the entire left flank. Was consistently making his presence felt both in the attack and the defence. Though his passing accuracy and the number of duels won were average, his presence in the flank helped his team to craft play and this presence was vital for his team. Was the source of most of the long balls made form the defensive half.

Midfielders

Julio Enciso - 7.5/10

Was very active in the wings. Made some runs and gave proper crosses inside the box. One such cross made was attempted to clear by an opponent defender. But things did not go as planned. The ball went straight to Galarza who just had to connect it to fins the back of the net. Later on he was seen firmly pressing the defenders which helped his team regain possession and make some unexpected attacks. In the second half, he scored the second goal of the match i form of a penalty.

Matias Galarza - 7/10

Had proper positioning in the attacking third. Lurked in the opponent box and this became pivotal for his team. When Enciso made the cross, Ugarte attempted to clear it. This however was not properly done and the ball went to the Galarza who was the fox in the box. He properly connected the ball to find the back of the net and open the accounts for his team. Later on he received a yellow card which to some extent restricted his gameplay.

Andres Cubas - 7/10

The player was rather playing as a DM with a strong inclination to the right flank. Was seen supporting the right back for the vast majority of the match. While Araujo made some moves from the flanks he came in to the rescue to provide an additional layer of obstacle to enter their territory. Won a large share of duels he was involved in.

Diego Gomez - 6/10

Crafted play for his team multiple times and provided some key passes, which added up pressure upon the opponents. Was equally contributing into the defence by making some tackles and interceptions. Also made a couple of key passes in the match.

Miguel Almiron - 7/10

Had the first real chance of the match. Took a pretty solid shot on target which although was saved by the keeper, set up the tone for Paraguay to initiate their attacks and just around a minute later this thy forund the opener. Was seen almost everywhere in the pitch and this all round performance really benefitted the team.

Attackers

Antonio Sanabria - 6/10

Had an average day. Was seen playing more like an AM rather than a CF. Had almost no contriblutions into the attack. Had a bad passing accuracy. Wasn't able to win much duels evnthough he was involved in a significant number of them. Had a day which he would not like to remember. However for the team, the bad performance of the player was compensated by the attacks of his fellow teammates.

Substitutes

M. Villasanti - 6/10

Made a few tackles, won duels and had a decent share of contributions in par with the time played.

Avalos - 6/10

Replaced Sanabria to reinforce the attack. The fresh legs helped to further press the already shaky Uruguayan backline.

R. Sosa - N/A

A. Romero - N/A

Angel Romero - N/A

Manager

Gustavo Alfaro- 7/10

Had a great day. Properly deployed his tactics and countered whenever the opponents were too much focused on attacking. Was able to bring his team together and get a solid win to become one step closer to the world cup.

Uruguay National Team Player Ratings vs Paraguay Football Team

Goalkeeper

Santiago Mele - 6.5/10

Was challenged quite a bit often by the Paraguayan Players. The young keeper, despite the pressure put upon him, did reasonably well. He did not have much to do in the goals, but in all the shots he could have done something, he was exceptional.

Defenders

Mathias Olivera - 6/10

Held down the attempt made by the Paraguayan National Team from the right wing. Did a good job physically defeating Juan Caceres multiple times when he came forward to contribute to the attack. Made some cameo appearances in the attack to help his team. Probably one of the only positives in the back line for Uruguay.

Jose Maria Gimenez - 6.5/10

The player was seen making contributions both in the attack and defence pretty consistently. Attempted a few headers and shots in the attacking third. Was seen losing balance multiple times and giving away space toc the opponents.

Ronald Araujo - 6/10

Was put under some serious pressure as he was aggressively pressed by Enciso. Quite a few times, he succumbed to this pressing, and this created some trouble for his team. It felt somewhere like the player lacked the confidence he had. He was seen a bit shaky throughout the match and lost possession a good number of times. In the second half, a mistake from his side led to the opponents winning a penalty which they converted and doubled their lead.

Guillermo Varela - 6/10

The player had good stats overall. Had a good passing accuracy, won almost all the duels he was involved in, both aerial and ground. Made a couple of clearances and interceptions. But the player was not mobile and was restricted to only a small part of the pitch, which did not favour the team. For this reason, the player was subbed off in the second half.

Midfielders

Giorgian De Arrascaeta - 5.5/10

Had a average day. Though he was seen everywhere in the attacking third, his crosses were weak, his attempts went fatal and some of the shots took wen off target. Did not perform as how the team would have wanted. The solid right full back made the job of the player even hard.

Manuel Ugarte - 7/10

The United midfielder did not have a match as he would have expected. He was unable to create much of an impact in the first half. Did not manage to win a good propotion of the duels he was involved in. Adding up to his frustration, he made a very silly error. Enciso made a cross which could have been cleared by the defender. But Ugarte did not communicate and tried to clear it which led to further problems. The ball went straight to Galarza who headed in to find the opener. However in the second half the player played exceptionally well.

Nahitan Nandez - 6/10

Had a decent day individually. Was successful in most of the duels. Pretty solid in the flanks and had a good stat overall. Also had a fair share in the defence too. But the poor performance of his teammates affected his style of play too.

Attackers

Maxmiliano Araujo - 6/10

Was pretty good in the left wing. Made some proper runs and provided some accurate crosses inside the box which unfortunately was not able to find the back of the net as either it was easily saved by the keeper or it wasn't properly connected by his teammates. In multiple instances he made some beautiful moves to get past the defenders and penetrate into the box.

Rodrigo Aguirre - 6/10

The player created some trouble for the opponents in the second half but at the end of the day was unable to score. Had good perormance, probably one of the only player who performed well. Provided some key pass, made shot on target but in the end everything went to vain.

Facundo Pellistri - 7/10

The player was relativly good while comparing to his teammates. Gave his best to attack. Initiated attacks from the wings from the early minutes of the game. But it felt like the player lacked the flair and was easily succumbed to the full backs.

Substitutes

R. Zalazar - 6/10

Came in very early in the second half to strengthen the full back position. However the player was unable to resist the moves made by the opponent wingers.

J. Piquerez - 6/10

Won duels, made clearances and relatively was able to keep the left flank silent during his course of action.

A. Alvarez- N/A

B. Rodriguez - N/A

Manager

Marcelo Bielsa - 6/10

Had a bad day.Was not able to properly attack and defend. Once they trailed, he failed to regroup. Has lots of room for improvement and has to focus on the basics.

Sportsdunia's Player of the Match is Julio Enciso