Uruguay and Peru meet in the 2022 South American World Cup Qualifiers. This game will take place at Estadio Centenario in Montevideo. The home team cannot waste any game. The hosts are currently in fourth place in the standings with 22 points, while Peru have 21 points and are just one place behind La Celeste. The hosts have reignited their qualification hopes as they recorded two back-to-back wins against Venezuela and Paraguay in January.
Peru are unbeaten in their last four qualification games and played out a 1-1 draw against Ecuador. With just two games left to play in the qualification campaign, this is a do-or-die fixture for both sides.
Uruguay are among the first four spots of the standings in the South American World Cup Qualifiers with a record of 6-4-6 and 22 points, which gives them direct access to Qatar 2022. But if the team loses one of their last two games, things could get complicated as Peru and Chile have 21 and 19 points, respectively.
Peru, in the 5th spot of the qualifiers, can opt to play in the inter-confederation play-offs, but a couple of wins could also give them direct access to Qatar 2022. Peru is one of the favourites to play in Qatar, but their situation could worsen.
The last meeting between the two teams ended in a 1-1 stalemate back in September, 2021. Uruguay have not suffered a defeat in three successive games against Peru, registering a total of 1 win and 2 draws. Being the host turned out to be of great benefit in the last ten encounters, with the squad playing on home ground, recording six victories and avoiding defeat in 8 out of 10 matches. Only 2 of the most recent ten clashes resulted in a draw. One of their last five battles on the pitch resulted in over 2.5 goals, and three had both sides scoring. In that period, The Sky Blue managed to keep two clean sheets, while Peru conceded goals in all cases. The opponents exchanged nine goals in their last five H2H meetings.
Team News:
Uruguay: Matias Vecino tested positive for COVID-19 and was replaced by Fabricio Diaz in the squad. Manuel Ugarte has also joined up with the initial 26-man squad announced by Diego Alonso. There are no injuries or suspensions for the hosts.
Peru: Paolo Guerrero and Jefferson Farfan are the two key absentees for the visiting side with injuries. Jose Carvallo became the latest casualty for La Bicolor with appendicitis.
Miguel Araujo tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this week and is ruled out for the two qualifying games. Raziel Garcia will serve a one-match ban due to his second yellow card of the campaign.
Uruguay vs Peru Predicted XI
Uruguay Predicted XI (4-3-3): Fernando Muslera (GK); Martin Caceres, Diego Godin, Jose Gimenez, Matias Vina; Manuel Ugarte, Federico Valverde, Rodrigo Bentancur; Darwin Nunez, Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani
Peru Predicted XI (4-5-1): Pedro Gallese (GK); Luis Advíncula, Christian Ramos, Alexander Callens, Marcos Lopez; Wilder Cartagena, Yoshimar Yotun, Andre Carrillo, Edison Flores, Christian Cueva; Gianluca Lapadula