The Paraguay Under 23 team celebrate thanks to Marcelo Fernandez, who this Saturday managed to keep his team undefeated by scoring a goal against Peru that gave them, 1-0, their second consecutive victory in the South American Pre-Olympic tournament. A bit that complicates Argentina and Uruguay, of course.
The only goal of the match at the Misael Delgado stadium, in the Venezuelan city of Valencia, came in the 18th minute, with a right hand from outside the area by Fernández, after a nice wall started by himself, and it helped him score his second goal in the competition, after equalizing the actions against Uruguay last Wednesday, when his team beat the Charrúas 4-3.
Thanks to this new victory, Albirroja is in first place in the Group B standings – with 7 points, after two wins and a draw -, followed by Argentina, which rests on this date and accumulates 4 points, while that Peru, third with 3, was virtually eliminated.
Uruguay, led by Marcelo Bielsa, must look for its first points tonight facing Chile, with the obligation to get closer to the top.
It is worth remembering that the first two in the group will advance to the next round, so in case Paraguay maintains this winning streak (it plays against Chile in the last one), Argentina y Uruguay (favorites in the preview) will have to play for second place in a head-to-head match scheduled for the last date, Friday the 2nd.
In the match, Diego Gómez, Lionel Messi’s teammate at Inter Miami, was close to scoring the second goal, but the Paraguayan’s shot went over the goal in one of the clear scoring opportunities that the intense Albirroja had during the match. first time.
In the second half, Peru had more arrivals into the rival area, although they were unable to convert any of their chances, encountering a solid defense on the other side.
Peruvian Diego Romero also did not allow Paraguay to make it 2-0, frustrating a header from Ronaldo De Jesús in the 70th minute, with reflexes that protected his team on other occasions.
On the fourth date, Peru will face Uruguay on Tuesday, while Paraguay rests to face Chile the following week in its last match of this phase.
The Pre-Olympic tournament, which is held for the first time on Venezuelan soil and grants two places to Paris 2024, will define a regional champion, a title held by Argentina, and a runner-up, a place occupied in the last edition by Brazil.
With information from Agencies