Paraguay at the 2026 World Cup: Alfaro’s Defensive Rebirth
Paraguay arrive at the 2026 World Cup as a side transformed, according to The Guardian’s 2026 World Cup Experts’ Network — and the mood back home reflects that. When qualification was sealed with a tense 0-0 draw against Ecuador in Asunción, president Santiago Peña declared the following day a national holiday. That tells you everything about what reaching this tournament means.
For years, Paraguay tried to play a possession-based game without much success at either end of the pitch. The turning point came in August 2024, when Argentinian coach Gustavo Alfaro was appointed. His message from the start was blunt and clear: defensive discipline, collective intensity, and clean sheets. He was not wrong to back himself.
Alfaro stuck almost exclusively to a 4-4-2 throughout qualifying, occasionally shifting to a back five for high-altitude fixtures against Ecuador and Bolivia. That same shape is expected to be his default at the World Cup, with a 4-2-3-1 used sparingly.
The results under his watch have been remarkable. Paraguay beat both Brazil and Argentina at home during qualifying — results that convinced even the doubters that the revival was genuine. Away from home, they lost only once, against Brazil, while picking up creditable draws in Bolivia at 4,100 metres above sea level, in Ecuador at 2,800 metres, and in the suffocating heat and humidity of Barranquilla against Colombia.
Alfaro himself is a fascinating figure. He retired as a player in 1992, aged 30, to focus on coaching, and built his reputation on toughness and organisation. He guided unfancied Arsenal de Sarandí to the 2007 Copa Sudamericana and the 2012 Argentinian Primera División, before his most notable achievement prior to Paraguay — taking a young Ecuador side to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, a journey he documented in his book Cazadores de Utopías Imposibles (Hunters of Impossible Utopias).
If Paraguay have a player capable of changing a game in an instant, it is Julio Enciso. The 21-year-old, known as La Joya (The Jewel), made his name at Brighton in the Premier League — most memorably with a stunning long-range strike against Manchester City — before injuries and managerial upheaval limited his impact. He has since moved to Strasbourg and found renewed form. Fast, direct and dangerous in the final third, Enciso is Paraguay’s most potent attacking weapon.
For UK fans tracking the group-stage picture, our World Cup 2026 hub has full coverage, and you can follow the live standings as the tournament gets under way on 11 June.