In an interview with the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA), Daniel Garnero, the head coach of the Paraguayan national mens team, highlighted the impact and potential that younger players are continuing to have on the performance of the national team.
Paraguay last reached the World Cup finals in 2010, reaching as far as the quarter-finals – to then be beaten by eventual Champions Spain.
Garnero, who took the reins of the team in September 2023, guides a squad that looks primed to make the step up with a generation of experienced players and emerging talents, alongside a U-23 crop determined to show that they, too, are ready after qualifying for the Olympics.
Currently seventh in the ten-team group that will decide CONMEBOL’s representatives at the FIFA World Cup in 2026, the 55-year-old head coach is looking to get results in the remaining six qualifying fixtures in 2024, as well as at the Copa America, to be played in June and July, in the USA.
Garnero hints at the difference it can make to the team when the whole country is behind them, and mentions “a level of impatience among the public stemming from set-backs we’ve had, things like not making it to recent World Cups, that has led to a mood of resignation, which we also need to eliminate,” and stresses the importance of being mentally prepared as much as physically prepared.
“Many things that happen on the pitch can have an impact off of it, and vice versa. A lot of footballers have been weighed down by those things, and the burdens only gets heavier in the face of adversity. We stress the importance of the mental side, as well as the need to believe that we’ll find a way to achieve our objectives, as long as we don’t fold in the face of adversity and always remain positive.”
Garnero also points to the difficulties that come from transitioning between generations of players, and the benefits that come from getting it right.
“When it comes to generations, it’s always better when there’s not a lot of difference. Paraguay struggled to transition from one very good group to another. That’s what’s happening today. There’s a very good group of guys, but also a new crop that are trying to muscle in. I see that as a positive and think it can help us.”
“Previous teams didn’t have players with the ability to turn a game with individual brilliance, like Julio Enciso, Miguel (Almiron), Ramon Sosa, too. These are players with blistering pace who do really well in one-on-one situations.”
He was also keen to praise the attitude of the Under-23 team that recently won the qualifying tournament which secured their participation at the Olympics in Paris later this year.
“I saw that we have a U-23 team that has a good mindset. In the face of adversity, the team responded. It was based on that defensive solidity I mentioned. They didn’t crumble and performed at a very high level. When good players are at their best, they make the difference, and that’s what allowed them to win the title.”
Next up for Paraguay is the Copa America, and the remaining six World Cup qualifiers that will determine whether or not Paraguay progress to the 2026 finals. Garnero knows exactly what he wants from his players:
“Our objective is to have a clear game plan and a strong work ethic. We’re in a very difficult qualifying region, but we have to prepare knowing that these challenges will force us to give it our all to get a good result.”
