Santiago, Chile, Nov 16: Pablo Contreras scored in the 27th minute and Matias Campos Toro added another in the 85th as Chile defeated Paraguay 2-0 on Tuesday in South American World Cup qualifying.
Chile improved to six points from four matches, and Paraguay stayed on four—also from four matches.
The victory was important for Chile coach Claudio Borghi, whose side was beaten 4-0 on Saturday by Uruguay. Borghi suspended five players after he said they showed up for a practice under the influence of alcohol. They did not play in either match.
“It has been the toughest week of my life as a coach,” Borghi, an Argentine, said. “I'm very proud of what my players have done. Today they played for me and the coaching staff. We came into this game beaten up, and we needed to win.”
Lineups:
Chile: Claudio Bravo, Marco Gonzalez, Waldo Ponce, Pablo Contreras, Mauricio Isla, Gary Medel, Charles Aranguiz, Matias Fernandez (Milovan Mirosevic, 87), Eduardo Vargas (Esteban Paredes, 78), Humberto Suazo (Matias Campos Toro, 72), Alexis Sanchez.
Paraguay: Diego Barreto, Carlos Bonet (Hernan Perez, 45), Dario Veron, Julio Manzur, Miguel Samudio, Victor Ayala, Julio Dos Santos (Edgar Benitez, 61), Cristian Riveros, Sergio Aquino, Marcelo Estigarribia (Oscar Cardozo, 75), Nelson Haedo Valdez.
