Paraguay - Venezuela

Paraguay take on Venezuela in a semi-final game from Copa America 2011. The match kicks off at 01:45 GMT on Thursday morning and promises a very tense and tight game as both teams have performed very well so far in the competition. However, I think that the quality that the symbolic hosts in this match posses will be enough to see off Venezuela’s challenge.

Paraguay finished in 3rd place in their preliminary Group B of the competition after three draws but this was enough for them to qualify as one of the two best teams that finished third. The Guarani had the difficult task of getting past favourites for the title Brazil in the quarter-finals and they have to thank their defence and mainly their keeper Justo Villar who made a few fantastic saves in key moments of the game. However, Barios and Valdez upfront created some chances but did not manage to convert them. Paraguay have kept a clean sheet in five of the last seven games and they will again rely on their performance at the back against Venezuela but the individual quality upfront should be enough to get at least a goal as they already scored five in the tournament so far.

Venezuela surprised everyone at the Copa America this year as they were labelled firm outsiders in the competition before its start. However, after finishing 2nd in their group, the team managed to beat Chile 2:1 after a late winning goal from Cichero in the 81st minute. Venezuela have won two and drawn two of their four matches so far which means they have only lost once in the last eight Copa America games – 2-5-1. This will definitely a boost for the players who will again rely on their fighting spirit.

However, Paraguay have got serious advantage in the games between the two sides in recent years (4-1-1) and I fancy them to get to the final.