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Turkey vs Paraguay Predictions - Turkey to bounce back with World Cup win against Paraguay

Ralph Staniforth

Editor

Last updated: 17 Jun 2026

Ralph Staniforth 17 Jun 2026

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Turkey have won 7 of their last 9 matches and are favored to beat Paraguay.
Baris Yilmaz is in strong scoring form and tipped to score again.
Paraguay's defense showed weakness in a 4-1 loss to the USA.

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Baris Yilmaz scored 2 goals in his last 3 games for Turkey (Getty)

Turkey vs Paraguay Predictions

Turkey suffered a surprise defeat to Australia in their opening game, so come into this knowing they need a win. Given Paraguay's shocking performance against the USA, I foresee Turkey getting the points.

Turkey have won 7 of their last 9 matches.
Baris Yilmaz has scored 2 goals in his last 3 matches for Turkey.
Paraguay have lost 2 of their last 3 matches.

Head to Head

These two have only met once in a friendly but that was back in 1995. The match ended 0-0.

Turkey Form

Turkey had 1.36-1.18 expected goals, 72% possession and 30-9 shots in their World Cup 2026 opening clash against Australia which ended in a 2-0 defeat.

Karem Akturkoglu missed a huge opportunity to break the deadlock in the first half, as well as Zeki Celik in the later stages. Real Madrid’s Arda Guler fired a total of 8 shots here (3 on target) but lacked precision.

After eliminating Romania and Kosovo with 1-0 victories in the playoffs, Vincenzo Montella also looked great in their two test games ahead of the tournament, beating North Macedonia 4-0 and Venezuela 2-1. Baris Yilmaz appeared on the scoresheet on both occasions.

Paraguay Form

Paraguay arrived at the World Cup 2026 as one of the strongest defensive teams that conceded just 10 goals in 18 qualifying matches but their back line fell apart in a 4-1 defeat against USA last week.

They were three goals behind at the break already, while Mauricio was the one to score a consolation in the 73rd minute which was their only shot on target.

Paraguay opted for just one test match in June and they delivered against Nicaragua, winning the encounter 4-0 in front of the home crowd in Asuncion, allowing just 28% possession and zero shots to the opposition.

Turkey vs Paraguay News & Predicted Lineups

Turkey (4-2-3-1) Ugurcan Cakir; Zeki Celik, Merih Demiral, Abdulkerim Bardakci, Ferdi Kadioglu; Hakan Calhanoglu, Ismail Yuksek; Arda Guler, Orkun Kokcu, Kenan Yildiz; Baris Yilmaz

Strategy with Karem Akturkoglu didn't really work out for the Turks against Australia, so I expect them to start with Baris Yilmaz as false nine here, while Kenan Yildiz to take his place as an attacking midfielder.

Paraguay (4-4-2) Orlando Gill; Juan Caceres, Gustavo Gomez, Omar Alderete, Junior Alonso; Kaku, Andres Cubas, Damian Bobadilla, Miguel Almiron; Antonio Sanabria, Julio Enciso

Diego Gomez was one of the worst rated players from the first clash and I expect him to be moved to bench, Kaku to take his place in the starting lineup. Paraguay have no reported injuries ahead of this match.

Verdict

Türkiye v Paraguay

Turkey won seven out of their last nine games and have bigger quality than Paraguay, especially when it comes to scoring potential. I am backing the Crescent Stars to recover from the opening loss and win here.

Another bet worth considering is Baris Yilmaz to score anytime. His form in early June was great, scoring both against Venezuela and North Macedonia.

Turkey Win

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Ralph is from South Africa and studied Sports Science post school at ETA (Education Teachers Academy) in Cape Town.

He has always had a great passion for sport and this led him into the world of sports journalism, while coaching on the side. Since 2012 Ralph has worked as a journalist and covered many topics from business to sport.

Over the last seven years he has interviewed numerous top rugby and cricket players and coaches in South Africa.

Ralph has been betting on sports for the last ten years. He’s knowledgeable on numerous topics including football, rugby, cricket, tennis and golf.

He supports Manchester United (football), Cheetahs (rugby), Knights (cricket) and has a newly found appreciation for Dominic Thiem on the tennis courts.