Key events
Paraguay haven’t scored a goal in five World Cup knockout games. Statistics never lie, but they can be economical with the truth and Paraguay have troubled some very good teams.
The eventual winners France needed the World Cup’s first Golden Goal to beat them in 1998; the finalists Germany needed a superb late winner from the unsung Oliver Neuville in 2002.
In 2010, after beating Japan on penalties following a 0-0 draw, they gave Spain a sizeable scare. Even in 1986, when they lost handsomely to good old England, they had chances to take the lead.
Preamble
Hello and welcome to live, scene-by-scene coverage of 4369 Days Later. That’s how long it’s been since Germany’s last World Cup knockout game, a scenario none of us could have foreseen when Mario Gotze scored the winner against Argentina in the 2014 final.
Paraguay have waited even longer to return to this particular do-or-die saloon, but then they’re not Germany so it’s not as big a deal. They are semi-forgotten quarter-finalists from 2010, when they gave the eventual winners Spain an abundant scare before eventually losing 1-0. Oscar Cardozo had a second-half penalty saved when the score was 0-0.
Germany are strongish favourites today, but their 12-year absence from the knockout rounds tells us that the old certainties around Germany and the World Cup no longer apply. The reward for the winners is dubious: France or Sweden in the last 16.
Kick off 4.30pm EDT/9.30pm BST/6.30am AET
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