US faces Paraguay in World Cup opener with pressure to win despite expanded format
The United States will host Paraguay in their World Cup opener on Friday in Los Angeles, with the higher-ranked Americans favored despite the expanded 48-team format making group stage losses less critical. The U.S. enters as Group D favorites at 17th in the world rankings versus Paraguay's 41st ranking, and hold a recent three-match winning streak against the South Americans. A victory would help establish confidence and group leadership, though the U.S. defensive vulnerabilities—only one clean sheet in 13 games—could be exploited by Paraguay's physical backline.
The United States will host underdogs Paraguay on Friday at Los Angeles Stadium in Inglewood to begin their World Cup campaign as tournament co-hosts. The U.S., ranked 17th globally, are heavy favorites over Paraguay (41st), who qualified through the competitive CONMEBOL section and are returning to the World Cup for the first time since 2010. While the expanded 48-team format means only 16 teams will be eliminated in the group stage—reducing the absolute necessity of winning every match—former U.S. World Cup player Cobi Jones emphasized that an opening victory would be crucial for building confidence and establishing group leadership. The U.S. possess a formidable attacking lineup featuring Weston McKennie, Christian Pulisic, and Folarin Balogun, but their defense remains a concern with only one clean sheet in their last 13 games and 11 goals conceded in their past four matches. Paraguay, conversely, feature a stout physical defense but a weak offense that scored just 14 goals in 18 qualifying matches, and will be without key forward Julio Enciso due to injury.
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US battle Paraguay in pressure-packed World Cup opener
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