Confident Paraguay face Slovakia test

Paraguay head into their clash with Slovakia in Bloemfontein on Sunday knowing a win would take them to the brink of qualification for the second round.

All the teams in Group F are currently level-pegging but the South American side have their toughest game out of the way – at least on paper – with a 1-1 draw against defending world champions Italy in their Cape Town opener.

While Slovakia also picked up a point, in Rustenburg, the eastern European outfit were shell-shocked after conceding a last-gasp equaliser against group outsiders New Zealand.

The South Americans came into the tournament in great shape after beating Brazil and Argentina in qualifying and will fancy their chances of reaching the last 16 after holding the group favourites.

Argentinian coach Gerardo Martino said taking a point from the Italy game had given the team a confidence boost but said Paraguay needed to “improve on our possession and how we move the ball.”

The South Americans are in their fourth straight finals with much of the credit given to Martino, who has managed to negotiate a delicate transition phase for his team but they have never progressed beyond the second round.

Paraguay have a strong set of strikers, with Martino opting to pair Argentina-born Lucas Barrios and his Borussia Dortmund team-mate Nelson Valdez for the Italy clash while Roque Santa Cruz of Manchester City came on as a second-half substitute.

Their tight and effective defensive unit is marshalled by goalkeeper Justo Villar.

The South Americans are dedicating their games to Salvador Cabanas, the 2007 South American footballer of the year who was shot in the head in the toilet of a Mexico City bar in January. He survived, but is on a long road to recovery.

While Paraguay also let a lead slip in their opener, the late goal conceded by Slovakia meant their draw against New Zealand felt like a defeat and they missed out on establishing a crucial early advantage in the group.

Head coach Vladimir Weiss described the equaliser to Robert Vittek’s opener as a “small sporting tragedy for us.”

Vittek said: “We?ve got no excuses for conceding a goal like that in the 93rd minute of a match as important as a World Cup group match, because things like that can decide our future.”

“We needed the three points, we?ve just got one but it feels like we got none,” he added.

Napoli midfielder Marek Hamsik is the main dangerman for Slovakia with other threats coming from striker Stanislav Sestak, who plays for Budensliga club VfL Bochum, and Miroslav Stoch, a winger who has just been sold by Chelsea to Turkish giants Fenerbahce after a successful season on loan at Dutch champions FC Twente.

Slovakia are appearing for the first time in the World Cup finals, previously involved as part of the former Czechoslovakia.

KEY TO MATCH

Roque Santa Cruz (PAR) v Marek Hamsik (SVK)

The match pits Manchester City striker Roque Santa Cruz against Slovakia’s captain and playmaker Marek Hamsik. Napoli midfielder Hamsik pulls the strings for Slovakia in midfield and is also a goalscorer. At 22, he is being tipped as a major star and is being monitored by a number of top clubs.

Santa Cruz will be hoping to play a major role after coming on as a second-half substitute in the match against Italy amid reports of a niggling injury.