Costa Rica, without scoring a single goal in the tournament, managed to secure a point against none other than Brazil with a 0-0 draw. Paraguay has scored one goal per match in both their losses against Colombia (2-1) and Brazil (1-4), and I believe they will also score against Costa Rica.
Costa Rica´s problem is that even if they win against Paraguay, they have a goal difference of -3, while Brazil has +4. This means their only chance is if Uruguay wins by enough goals to compensate for Costa Rica's deficit after their own potential victory. I won't say it´s impossible, but it looks very tough for Costa Rica, and they will need help from Colombia.
Team captain Francisco Calvo needs to be cautious about receiving another yellow card, as he already has one. If he gets another and Costa Rica advances to the quarterfinals, he will miss that crucial match. Manfred Ugalde will miss the final group stage match after receiving yellow cards in the previous two matches against Brazil and Colombia.
COSTA RICA predicted lineup vs Paraguay ( 3-4-2-1 ): Sequeira; Mitchell, Vargas, Calvo; Quiros, Galo, Aguilera, Campbell; Zamora, Madrigal; Contreras.
Midfielder Andres Cubas is the only player unavailable for the match against Cosa Rica, this after receiving a red card in the match against Brazil.
PARAGUAY predicted lineup vs Costa Rica ( 4-2-3-1 ): Morinigo; Velazquez; Balbuena, Alderete, Espinoza; Sanchez, Villasanti; Almiron, Enciso, Sosa; Bareiro.
Costa Rica's achievement in holding Brazil to a 0-0 draw in their first match was commendable, but now they face the greater challenge of pushing forward to score against Paraguay, which is necessary for their advancement.
Paraguay has managed to score in every match of this year's Copa America, against both Colombia and Brazil, whereas Costa Rica has yet to score and has conceded three goals against Colombia.
Even though Paraguay has nothing to play for in terms of advancing, I believe they will still give their all to avoid finishing last in the group, which Costa Rica would do with a loss. At the same time, Costa Rica will likely gain motivation if they see Brazil falling behind against Colombia, potentially giving them more energy to push for the outcome they desire.
It sets the stage for an exciting final group stage match!
COSTA RICA v PARAGUAY
3.48
PARAGUAY WIN + OVER 8.5 CORNERS
COSTA RICA v PARAGUAY
3.48
PARAGUAY WIN + OVER 8.5 CORNERS
