Paraguay coach Gustavo Alfaro accepted full responsibility for his team's 4-1 loss to co-host United States in their 2026 World Cup group opener on June 13-14, urging the media to direct criticism at him rather than his players. "Criticise me. You can shoot at me but not at them," Alfaro said, emphasizing the players will keep representing Paraguay long after he is gone [1, 2, 3].
The defeat was a major shock to the squad and their roughly 7 million supporters. Midfielder Matias Galarza described the loss as a chapter now closed, calling their next match against Turkey a "final" [1, 2, 3]. Turkey had also lost their opening match, 2-0 to Australia on June 14 [1, 2, 3].
Paraguay met Turkey in the San Francisco Bay Area on June 19-20 and won 1-0 with an early goal by Galarza within the first 64 seconds of the game [4]. Midfielder Miguel Almirón was sent off in first-half stoppage time, but Paraguay held on for the victory [4].
The result knocked Turkey out of the World Cup and confirmed the United States as group winners following their win over Australia [4]. Alfaro praised his players’ fighting spirit and joy after the win, saying Paraguay should never feel like underdogs despite facing prestigious opponents. "We will always give our best and represent our jersey in the best possible way," he said [4].
After the final whistle, Alfaro told his team he wanted to see the joy in their eyes and the fighting spirit to prove they are not defeated, even when others might think so [4].
Paraguay will play their last group stage match against Australia on June 25 [4].
