Head coach of the Paraguay national team Gustavo Alfaro shared his emotions after defeating Nimecchina in a penalty shootout, which led his team to the 1/8 finals of the World Cup 2026.

" It is very important for us to achieve such a result. And we grant this victory to all people, all Paraguayans, even though I know that they themselves greatly appreciated the victories of the team. We deserve the stink, because we have always been encouraged and appreciated. I lived through this match even more intensely, like all others, because of the tension that engulfed the field from start to finish."

Fakhіvets also signifies the strength of the opponent and the self-sacrifice of their players, who were able to overcome the pressure of one of the main contenders for the title.

" The boys played a wonderful match, depending on our needs and the fact that they had to give their all, otherwise they would not allow Germany to know the way to our gates. Although we wanted a lot of things to lose, we had to take care of the very high temperature in the air: through such struggles, if we had to steadily run back to the defense, sometimes we simply lost the strength to run forward,” the coach said for VS Sports.

After the sensational success of the team, Paraguay will continue the fight for the trophy in the 1/8 finals, and will compete with the winner of the competition between France and Sweden. Varto noted that after the team exited before the next round, the President of Paraguay voted for a national holiday in the country.