Peru into the play-offs, Brazil start

Thomas Seneke, Media 365: Posted on Wed 30 Mar 2022 at 08:47

Peru is still dreaming of hosting the 2022 World Cup. On the night of Tuesday to Wednesday, Rojiblanca conceded their ticket to the final playoff matches in June, as they dominated Paraguay (2-0) on their last day in South America.

Peru only had to finish the job with a victory over Paraguay, and the Inca did not fail in their mission with a 2-0 win. Thanks to two first-half goals from Lapadula (5) and Jotun (42), the first-half work was done for the locals, who finished fifth in the play-off in the South American region. Facing the already ousted Paraguayans, the challenge did not overpower the Peruvians.

The opponents of the French national team in 2018 (1-0 for the Blues), will face in June, in Qatar, the winner of the Oceania final between New Zealand and the Solomon Islands, which takes place on Wednesday evening – already in Qatar, where the Oceania mini-tournament was hastily organized for ten days (the match The second interval in June will oppose the winner from Australia-UAE in fourth place from the CONCACAF region, or Costa Rica or the United States-United States). Should they win this last meeting – perhaps against the New Zealanders, the top favorites – Peru will play the sixth final stage in its history and second in a row, a two-pass pass that the country only managed once in 1978 and 1982. On the other hand, this was It is the eliminations for Colombia and Chile, who had been hoping for a false foul.

The Colombians won unpaid in Venezuela (0-1) with a penalty kick by James Rodriguez, while the Chileans lost at home to Uruguay (0-2) and late goals from Luis Suarez and Federico Valverde. The confrontation between Ecuador and Argentina ended in a 1-1 draw, the Ecuadorians tied in extra time, and Brazil secured the symbolic first place by touring Bolivia (0-4). Aside from the Richarlison double, that success for the Seleção team would be put under the OL mark, with two more goals from Lucas Paqueta and Bruno Guimarães, who left for Newcastle this winter. Even if the last Brazil-Argentina match is replayed, partners Neymar and Marquinhos are sure to maintain their six-point lead.