Upcoming Match-ups

2015 Copa America Betting – Peru vs. Paraguay

Zack Garrison

by Zack Garrison in News

Updated Jan 17, 2018 · 9:39 AM PST

Peru (+150) vs. Paraguay (+195), Draw (+275)

It’s safe to say Peru and Paraguay were not among the favorites to reach the final four of the 2015 Copa America. But managed surprise semifinal appearances and will now battle for third-place tomorrow at the Municipal de Concepción Stadium in Chile (7:30 PM Eastern).

Peru has been arguably the most surprising team in the tournament. Ricardo Gareca’s team beat Venezuela (1-0) and Bolivia (3-1), drew against Colombia (0-0), and lost dramatically to Brazil (2-1) en route to a semi-final showdown with host Chile.

Despite playing 70-plus minutes with just ten men on the field, the Peruvians gave Chile a real test in the semis; but the hosts emerged with a 2-1 win thanks to a double from Eduardo Vargas and Peru had to settle for a berth in the bronze medal game.

“Playing so much time with a man down against [the hosts] is difficult … ” Gareca said during the post-game press conference. “The expulsion changed the plan we had. We had to reset the defense because we lost a great man there. It happened in seconds. We tried to reassemble the back four.”

Paraguay weren’t as impressive in their run to the semifinals. Indeed, they managed just one win over Jamaica (1-0) in the group stage while drawing Argentina (2-2) and Uruguay (0-0). They downed Brazil on penalties (1-1, 4-3 p.k.) in the quarterfinals, but then were demolished (6-1) in a rematch with Argentina in the semis.

Paraguay have had some success against Peru of late, taking two of the last four head-to-head. But the Peruvians have shown better form in this tournament and should come on top.

Pick: Peru (+150).

(Photo credit: Johann Cárdenas (Fotografía subida a Flickr: [1]) [Attribution], via Wikimedia Commons. Photo has been cropped.)

Author Image