- Charrúas and Guaraníes did not draw differences in the match for Matchday 7 of the South American Qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026.
- Luis Suárez played his last match with La Celeste and bid farewell to his fans at the Estadio Centenario.
The national teams of Uruguay and Paraguay drew 0-0 this Friday in Montevideo, in the seventh matchday of the FIFA World Cup – United States, Mexico, and Canada 2026, in the farewell match for Luis Suárez.
La Celeste almost never managed to impose the fast-paced game that characterizes coach Marcelo Bielsa, hindered by a successful defensive strategy from his colleague and compatriot Gustavo Alfaro, who achieved a draw in his debut, in a tough match.
With this result, Uruguay provisionally maintains second place in the table, with 14 points, while Paraguay remains in seventh place, with 6, awaiting the conclusion of matches between Brazil vs. Ecuador and Peru vs. Colombia, to finalize Matchday 7.
“Thank you for so much, Lucho!”, “You were and will be my eternal idol”, “You are unique and unparalleled”: more than 60,000 souls filled the stands of the Centenario to see the champion of the CONMEBOL Copa América 2011, who at 37 years old wore the jersey of his national team for the last time.
In the next round, Uruguay will face Venezuela in Maturín, and Paraguay will play against Brazil at the Defensores del Chaco in Asunción.
– Match Numbers –
- Uruguay reached its eighth match without losses against Paraguay in South American Qualifiers (4W 4D). On the other hand, the Albirroja ended a streak of five consecutive home wins for La Celeste in the tournament.
- It was Luis Suárez’s last match with the Uruguayan national team. The forward retires with a total of 143 appearances and 69 goals (all-time top scorer of La Celeste). Luis Suárez retires from international football as the second all-time top scorer of the South American Qualifiers with 29 goals in 60 matches played, only behind Lionel Messi (31 in 65 matches).
- Uruguay achieved its fourth consecutive match without conceding goals in the current South American Qualifiers. The last goal scored against Bielsa’s team was in the 2-2 draw against Colombia in Matchday 3.
- Uruguay conceded two shots on goal against Paraguay and has only allowed five in its last four appearances in the South American Qualifiers, averaging just 1.25 shots on target conceded per game.
- Paraguay had fewer total shots than Uruguay (8 against 11) but accumulated more expected goals (0.89 to 0.58). The Albirroja had the highest probability of scoring in the match with a shot from Miguel Almirón, in the 31st minute, with 0.57 expected goals, but the shot went wide.
CONMEBOL.com / AFP / OPTA