Paraguay hosted Nicaragua on Friday at 19:15 in its last friendly before the 2026 World Cup, using a night at the Defensores del Chaco to turn a dress rehearsal into the final step of a long return. Gustavo Alfaro’s team entered the match with the stadium expected to be full and with the World Cup no longer a distant target but the next stop.
The reason the game drew attention was not just the calendar. Paraguay is back at the FIFA World Cup after 16 years, and this was the last chance to sharpen the plan before the squad is split apart and sent back together again. The expected spine of the side pointed to Roberto “Gatito” Fernández in goal, with Juan Cáceres, Gustavo Gómez, Omar Alderete and Junior Alonso behind a midfield of Diego Gómez, Alejandro Romero Gamarra, Andrés Cubas and Miguel Almirón, and Julio Enciso and Antonio Sanabria up front.
That was the expected shape, not a confirmed one. Alfaro did not publicly name the starting eleven even though Paraguay was projected to field most of its starters, leaving just enough room for uncertainty in a match that otherwise looked built to settle questions before the real tournament begins. The coach had spoken of a varied proposal in attack and defense, but Friday night still carried the feel of a final test rather than a finished answer.
What comes next is more concrete. After the match, the players were to be released until Saturday night before meeting again at the airport for the trip to the tournament site. Paraguay will be in Group D with the United States, Turkey and Australia, opening against the host team in Inglewood on Friday the 12th, then facing Turkey on Saturday the 20th in Santa Clara before closing against Australia on Thursday the 25th in the same place.
For Paraguay, the friendly against Nicaragua was less about the score than about crossing from preparation into consequence. Once the players leave the dressing room and return for the flight, the country’s 16-year wait ends and the margin for rehearsal disappears with it.
