The bottom two nations in CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying meet in the Clasico del Pacifico on Friday night, with Peru hosting Chile.
Combining the points tally of both sides would still not be enough to move them even into the playoff place, illustrating the dismal campaigns both have had so far.
Match preview
![Peru head coach Jorge Fossati on June 25, 2024 [IMAGO]](https://sm.imgix.net/24/26/jorge-fossati.jpg?w=640&h=480&auto=compress,format&fit=clip "Peru head coach Jorge Fossati on June 25, 2024 [IMAGO]")
© Imago
Peru became the final team left to record a win in South American qualifying last month, when they got the better of Uruguay by one goal to nil to register three points at the ninth time of asking.
That was the Blanquirroja's first competitive win since the qualifying phase for the 2022 World Cup almost three years ago, and saw them move off the foot of the standings, above their rivals and upcoming opponents.
The high was only temporary though, because Jorge Fossati's side were thumped 4-0 in Brazil just a few days later, leaving them six points adrift of the playoff place with time running out to make a late surge.
Drawing yet another blank shows where Peru's troubles lie, not scoring enough, and not having the defensive strength to bail themselves out, as they have netted only three goals in their 10 qualifiers so far.
For a team that reached the 2018 World Cup and the final of the 2019 Copa America, the rapid falloff is scarcely believable, and that appearance in Russia six years ago looks likely to remain their only successful qualification in 11 attempts.
In familiar surroundings, Fossati's men are much stronger though, considering they have only lost twice in their last 11 World Cup qualifiers on home soil, as Colombia also failed to win here in September.
Three points will be the order of the day though, because Chile had another disastrous week last month, extending their losing run to five matches in qualifying.
© Imago
A 17th defeat in 20 meetings with Brazil was not a good start to the month, losing in the last minute after taking the lead inside 100 seconds, and Peru's win over Uruguay shortly after sent them to the bottom of the standings.
Ricardo Gareca's men had no response on matchday 10 either, as they were hammered 4-0 in Colombia, leaving them on five points from a possible 30, meaning they look set to miss out on the finals for the third time in succession.
La Roja are in complete crisis, and the appointment of Gareca over the summer has done nothing to rectify the problem as he has lost all of his games in charge.
The managerial change was needed after they exited the Copa America groups without scoring, but they have arguably regressed even further since, especially considering they lost at home to Bolivia in September, handing La Verde their first away qualifying win in 67 attempts.
Team News
© Imago
Midfield duo Renato Tapia and Yoshimar Yotun are missing again for Peru as their lingering injury issues continue, with the latter having now not been able to join up with the national side in over a year.
One veteran who has got himself fit and firing is Paolo Guerrero, and the 40-year-old could feature for the first time since the Copa America.
Guerrero and right-back Luis Advincula are just six caps short of equalling the national record, which is currently jointly-held by the stricken Yotun.
Copenhagen midfielder Marcos Lopez will not add to his collection of caps this month though, as he has been left out due to the lack of game time he is getting at the Danish club.
With Erick Pulgar and Dario Osorio missing in midfield, Chile boss Gareca has decided to bring 37-year-old Arturo Vidal back into the fold for his first call up in 2024 following good form at Colo-Colo.
Record cap-holder Alexis Sanchez remains out injured though, and Ben Brereton Diaz has been snubbed once more, so the experienced Eduardo Vargas is set to start up front for the visitors.
In the absence of Alexis, defender Guillermo Maripan will take on the role of captain, and the Torino man hit the half-century of caps for the national team last month.
Peru possible starting lineup:
Gallese; Araujo, Zambrano, Abram; Advincula, Sonne, Castillo, Pena, Callens; Lapadula, Flores
Chile possible starting lineup:
Cortes; Loyola, Kuscevic, Maripan, Hormazabal; Valdes, Vidal, Echeverria; Mora, Vargas, Tapia
We say: Peru 2-0 Chile
Despite sitting six points off the top seven, Peru have shown promising signs at home, taking four points off Colombia and Uruguay recently, and against a Chile side in disarray, they will hope they can take advantage to claim a vital three points which could bring them back into contention.
One positive Chile can take into this encounter is that their solitary win so far in the campaign came against Peru last year, but even their most ardent fans will know that is simply clutching at straws, and a sixth straight defeat looks likely.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Andrew Delaney
Argentina
Uruguay
Ecuador
Colombia
Brazil
Paraguay
Bolivia
Venezuela
Chile
Peru
