There are still five games to play, but the seats on the plane to North America (USA, Canada, and Mexico) are running out. Time is running out, especially for those teams that are currently out of the running, such as Venezuela and Peru, eighth and ninth in the standings in a qualifying group of ten teams.
With sixth place now a distant dream, these two teams have no choice but to try to overtake Bolivia, currently in seventh. Their hopes of qualifying for the World Cup via the inter-zone play-offs – only the top six qualify directly – are therefore still alive. Peru, revitalized by the Ibanez effect, still believe they can do it.
Last Friday, the new coach made his debut with a crucial victory against Bolivia, who were beaten 3-1 thanks to goals from Polo, Flores, and Guerrero. In addition to the three points, La Bicolor also rediscovered its scoring touch, having failed to find the net in its last three qualifying matches and scoring just one goal in six games since September. Peru now has 10 points, just three behind Bolivia.
Venezuela, one point behind seventh place, failed to capitalize on La Verde’s collapse. La Vinotinto lost 2-1 to Ecuador, the big surprise of these qualifiers, missing out on a victory that, excluding those obtained in the final phase of the last Copa America, has not occurred since October 2023. Another worrying statistic for coach Fernando Batista is the number of goals conceded: Venezuela has not kept a clean sheet in its last six games, including January’s friendly against the United States.
Odds comparison
The “X2” is quoted at 1.65 on Goldbet and Lottomatica and at 1.67 on Snai. The “Goal” is quoted at 2.25 on Goldbet and Lottomatica and at 2.15 on Snai.
More information on bonuses
If you are a new user, in order to compare odds comprehensively, it may be useful to also analyze any bonuses offered by the operators themselves on new registrations.
- GOLDBET – Up to €3050 for sports and casino with 200% on your first sports deposit up to €1000 MORE INFO
- SNAI – €15 free + 50% on your first deposit up to €30 MORE INFO
- LOTTOMATICA – Up to €3050 for sports and casino with 200% on your first sports deposit up to €1000 MORE INFO
The prediction
Peru has not lost an official match against Vinotinto since 2013. Considering that this is a sort of last resort for La Bicolor, we can expect a positive result from Ibanez’s team, which has regained confidence after its impressive win against Bolivia. It is likely that both teams will score, as they did in the last two matches.
Probable line-ups for Venezuela vs. Peru
VENEZUELA (4-4-2): Romo; Gonzalez, Mejias, Ferraresi, Makoun; Vargas, Rincon, Segovia, Savarino; Rondon, Josef Martinez.
PERU (4-3-2-1): Gallese; Advincula, Garces, Abram, Trauco; Aquino, Tapia, Carrillo; Polo, Flores; Guerrero.
POSSIBLE RESULT: 1-1