Having both come through penalty shootouts in their respective quarter-final ties, Argentina and Paraguay will battle it out in the last four of the Copa America tomorrow night.

The match is a repeat of the Group B opener, which ended up being one of the tournament's most entertaining clashes to date.

Argentina

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They may not yet have played with the swagger often associated with pre-tournament favourites, but Gerardo Martino and his men and have still successfully negotiated their way through to the semi-finals.

La Albiceleste may have collected seven points from a possible nine in the group stages, but it was the opening clash against the Paraguayans that saw them receive plenty of criticism.

Leading 2-0 at the break thanks to goals from Sergio Aguero and Lionel Messi, they ended up being pegged back by their opponents, who earned themselves a share of the spoils.

That goal from Messi remains the only one that the Barcelona talisman has scored at the tournament, but Aguero has recently backed his close friend and teammate to come good in time for this encounter.

He certainly has a positive record against the Paraguayans, with four of his 46 international goals having been scored against them.

As a team, the Argentines are gunning for a record-equalling 15th Copa America title, yet it will be their first triumph since they successfully defended the title back in 1993.

Recent form: WWDWWD

Paraguay

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Not even the most ardent of Paraguayan supporters would have expected their nation to have reached this stage of the tournament.

They were drawn in a group alongside defending champions Uruguay and favourites Argentina and then having advanced through that, they found themselves up against five-time world champions Brazil. Yet, Ramon Diaz's men have passed each of those tests with flying colours.

In truth, not much was expected of Diaz's charges prior to this tournament getting underway.

They may have reached the final of the Copa America four years ago under Martino's stewardship, but since his departure, there has been much uncertainty until Diaz's arrival earlier this year.

While making the semi-finals should be regarded a success, having got so close last time, there is bound to be much determination among the Paraguayan squad to have another crack at a title that has eluded them since the country's triumph of 1979.

Recent form: WDDWDD

Team News

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Martino may have an embarrassment of riches within his squad, but his team selection has been fairly consistent and that is unlikely to change this time around.

Carlos Tevez may have scored the winning penalty against Colombia in the quarter-finals, but he is expected to find himself back on the bench alongside the likes of Gonzalo Higuain and Ever Banega.

Meanwhile, Diaz recalled a number of players for the clash with the Brazilians and it seems that most will keep their places.

In the build up to that game, there had been a suggestion that veteran striker Roque Santa Cruz would be dropped, but he did well against Brazil and should feature once again.

Argentina possible starting lineup:
Romero; Zabaleta, Garay, Otamendi, Rojo; Pastore, Mascherano, Biglia; Messi, Aguero, Di Maria

Paraguay possible starting lineup:
Villar; Piris, Aguilar, Da Silva, B Valdez; Gonzalez, Benitez, Caceres, Aranda; Santa Cruz, N Valdez

Head To Head

They may be full of confidence right now, but Paraguay have a rotten record from their clashes with Argentina.

There have been just 15 wins for the men in red and white stripes, the last of which came back in 2009 when Nelson Valdez scored the only goal of the game.

As for Argentina, they can boast a healthy 58 wins over the Paraguayans, with 31 draws also having been played out.

We say: Argentina 1-1 Paraguay

Argentina have not performed well so far and up against a stubborn Paraguay side, they may find it tough once again. There was not much to separate these teams in the group stages and it's likely to be that way again, with a second penalty shootout in as many matches a likely outcome.

Written by
Liam Apicella

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