World Cup Team Checks: Paraguay
March 16, 2006
World Cup Qualifiers
The fourth team to qualify for the 2006 World Cup, Paraguay left six teams behind them in their qualification group, including two-time world champions Uruguay, who saw their World Cup dreams quashed in a penalty kick shoot-out against Australia.
Stars
Paraguay's stars are a known quantity in Germany, as many of them play club soccer for Bundesliga teams, including Julio dos Santos, a silver medal winner at the Athens Olympics and recent addition to Bayern Munich. Roque Santa Cruz, a teammate of dos Santos' on the national and club teams, has proved to be a dangerous player, but injury has left him wondering if he'll make the World Cup roster. Nelson Valdez, a Werder Bremen regular, on the other hand will be able to tell his teammates the ins and outs of the German stadiums -- and how to win in them.
Coach
Anibal Ruiz took over the national team from Cesare Maldini after the 2002 World Cup on a temporary basis and was given the job for good in April 2003.
World Cup History
This summer will be Paraguay's seventh performance on world soccer's biggest stage.
1930: preliminary, 1950: preliminary, 1958: preliminary, 1986: preliminary, 1998: round of 16, 2002: round of 16.
Match Schedule: Preliminary Round
June 10: England - Paraguay in Frankfurt
June 15: Sweden - Paraguay in Berlin
June 20: Paraguay - Trinidad and Tobago in Kaiserslautern
World Cup Base
Paraguay found a place to stay in the Bavarian town of Oberhaching.
Outlook
Faced with a difficult group draw, the somewhat inconsistent mix of young and old on the Paraguayan team are likely to have all they can handle getting past the tournament's preliminary stage.