Now Gonzalez advances down the wing, and he drives down the byline, keeping the ball far away from his own goal. Into stoppage time now and it appears that Argentina have run out of ideas.
89'
M. Rojo gets yellow.
Perez uses his pace to exploit the shoddy positioning of Rojo, who was struggling to get back. He is forced to commit the foul, and it earns him a yellow card and a great position for Paraguay to waste some time.
86'
Dybala clips one over the top for Di Maria to chase, bu even with his pace, he can't get there in time. Another opening bites the dust for Argentina. Paraguay, meanwhile, are holding firm.
84'
DOWN THE THROAT OF THE KEEPER! Mercado does really well to hook a cross in from the byline, and it finds Aguero in the centre of the box. He pummels a header on goal but it's right at Villar.
82'
Another long-range effort that flies wide for Argentina, who are losing their nerve in the final third. They're increasingly becoming dependent on crosses from deep that are being dealt with easily.
80'
H. Pérez enters the game and replaces Á. Romero.
Hernan Perez has also been brought on for Angel Romero.
Paraguay have all 11 men back in their own half, and are doing everything they can to protect the lead. They're allowing Argentina to get their crosses in, confident that they'll be there to head clear.
77'
DYBALA GOES FOR GOAL! He drives across the edge of the box and lets loose a tremendous drive that stings the palms of Villar, before Higuain commits a foul on the follow-up.
75'
B. Valdez enters the game and replaces Rodrigo Rojas.
Di Maria is proving to be the main outlet for Argentina out on the left. He has been great at getting past his man and finding space for the cross. He also hit the post in the first half.
Rojas will head off as Amilcar gets a late appearance.
73'
Dybala produces an excellent pass to Di Maria down on the left-hand side, but after taking his time to measure up a cross, he sees it deflected out for a corner, which comes to nothing.
71'
Mascherano does excellently to cover across the back line and snuff out a potential counter but then, on the next play, he springs a pass a little too short, and is lucky that Musacchio is there to clean up.
Minute
Description
70'
L. Pratto enters the game and replaces É. Banega.
Pratto has been thrown on for Banega.
69'
The good news for Argentina is that Lionel Messi will be back in white and blue by the time the next international break rolls around. His absence has been glaring this evening.
68'
C. Ortiz enters the game and replaces M. Almirón.
Almiron has been withdrawn for Ortiz.
66'
The crowd are starting to get on Argentina's back now as they fail to maintain the intensity that typified their start to the second half. The longer this goes on, the better it gets for Paraguay.
63'
Di Maria plays in a very inviting ball that Higuain manages to get a touch on, but he can't convert it! Had that been on target it would have been very difficult to imagine Villar getting there in time.
61'
Banega spreads the play around the field, and the ball finds Di Maria, who threads in a low pass for Rojo, who shows great pace, but his cross can't find a teammate inside the area.
59'
P. Dybala enters the game and replaces N. Gaitán.
Dybala is introduced to a roar of expectation as Gaitan heads off.
58'
It's all been rather poor from Paraguay in the second period as a free-kick is headed away wth ease. It may not be long before they abandon their attacking intent in order to hold onto what will be a monumental result.
56'
To be fair to Argentina, the way that they've applied the pressure since the end of the first half probably warrants a goal. But I put a lot of stock in the idea that you make your own luck - and the hosts haven't done that when it's come to finishing.
54'
ARGENTINA HAVE TIED IT UP...BUT NO! A loud scream of joy from the home fans is cut shirt. Banega delivered a free-kick that Villar parries before the rebound was converted, but it appeared that there was an offside.
52'
Whirlwind start to the second half. That's three outstanding chances for Argentina to draw level, and they've passed up every single one of them. What next for the home side?
50'
VILLAR DENIES AGUERO AGAIN! An incredible turn of pace from the striker takes him beyond the defence, and he opens up his body to slam it home, but the keeper makes a tremendous stop!
48'
S. Agüero gets yellow.
And now Aguero is booked for a foul.
47'
Penalty saved by J. Villar!
Penalty Miss Sergio Leonel Agüero del Castillo
VILLAR SAVES IT! He really didn't have to do much there, the 39-year-old keeper. Aguero hesitated on the run up and his penalty was weak, low and far too central. What a waste.
46'
P. Da Silva gets yellow.
And we're back.
HANDBALL AMD A PENALTY! Da Silva challenged Higuain for a header, but he left his arm exposed and the ball struck it off the initial flick! Yellow card and a huge chance for the hosts.
44'
Higuain backs into Gomez and after a coming together between both sets of players, the referee decides to award the home side a free-kick. However, Paraguay escape any further damage.
42'
OVER THE BAR! A long ball is pumped towards Gaitan at the far post, and he heads it down for Higuain, who rushes his shot and can't find the target. Less than five minutes to go until half-time now.
39'
OPPORTUNITY FOR PARAGUAY! Gonzalez once again gets on his bike down the right-hand side, and slides a lovely pass that Angel Romero runs onto. He beats Musacchio for pace but can't keep his composure when finishing.
37'
The tempo of the game has showed somewhat, as Paraguay get men back in their own half to make sure that Argentina's time on the ball is spent in relatively harmless zones of the field.
34'
Aguero's first-time lay-off is excellent, and DI Maria is alive to it.having another pop from distance. However, he fails to trouble Villar as it flies wide of the mark. Argentina creating chances though.
32'
PARRIED! Gonzalez advances in space down the right and sprays the ball across the pitch, where Almiron intelligently lets it run for Oscar Romero, who unleashes a powerful hammer that's blocked by his namesake Sergio.
30'
What I've noticed is that while Paraguay have been very good at getting their heads to the initial ball into the box, they've faltered when it comes to keeping possession from that point - as that last chance illustrates.
28'
OVER THE BAR! Argentina continue to apply the pressure as a cross is cleared only to the top of the box, where Gonzalez switches off to allow Rojo space inside the area. However, he swings wildly at it and sends it flying.
26'
OFF THE POST AND AWAY TO SAFETY! Villar was well-beaten by a bouncing effort from Angel di Maria, but it bounced off the base of the woodwork. Unlucky from Argentina - that's the closest they've come!
24'
Angel Romero is inches away from making contact on a beautiful cross from Moreira. You can already detect some wobbles in the Argentine ranks as they're getting stretched on the break.
22'
Gorgeous ball from Banega - not the first time that's happened tonight. He finds Gaitan on the overlap, but the winger's cross is deflected out for a corner, which comes to nothing in the end.
20'
Argentina are a goal down and now have it all to do. They were carved apart by that attack - although Sergio Romero will feel disappointed that he let Gonzalez's shot past him at the near post.
18'
D. González has scored a goal for Paraguay! Assist by Á. Romero.
PARAGUAY ARE IN FRONT! A splendid touch from Angel Romero takes Mascherano out of the equation, and he threads in Gonzalez behind the defence, who advances on Sergio Romero and buries a low finish!
Lovely control and pass from the striker!
17'
Banega's raking pass is a good one for Gaitan, but it's swept away by Riveros - who has been in the right place at the right time more than once this evening. Argentina stating to get a little momentum.
16'
There was a chance for Argentina to break at pace. Di Maria can't quite beat his man for raw speed down the left, so he does a 180 and lays the ball off to Aguero at the top of the box - who loses possession.
15'
These two sides played out a goalless draw 12 months ago in Asuncion, in the early stages of Conmebol qualifying. It was a slow start to the process for la Albiceleste, who took only two points from their opening three games.
13'
A few errors are creeping into Argentina's play in the last few minutes as Banega makes a poor pass that's picked up by Riveros. However, Paraguay themselves are struggling to penetrate the final third.
11'
Paraguay put together a nifty little sequence in possession, with Angel Romero dropping deep to make an impact. However, Argentina refuse to be sucked out of their positions, and nullify the chance.
9'
Di Maria finds space at the top of the box, and lets fly with a low shot that takes a deflection off Gomez, which makes it more challenging than Villar initially thought. He still saves though.
6'
Paraguay threaten from a set-piece, which was a weakness of Argentina's during their match against Peru. There's a good look for Angel Romero, but he can't make contact.
4'
Terrible from Di Maria, miles over the head of everyone.
3'
Aguero gets space to scamper down the right-hand side, but he gets impeded by Gomez, who gets arms all around him. Early free-kick in a decent position for Argentina.
1'
We're off!
Hello and welcome to our live commentary of the Conmebol World Cup qualifier between Argentina and Paraguay. Four points and once place separate the teams in the table, as the South American section begins to take shape. Stick with us for all the action.
Argentina have been slipping up recently, labouring to 2-2 draws away to Peru and Venezuela, which has see them drop into the play-off position. They welcome Paraguay to Cordoba tonight, and will hope that home comforts signal a change in fortunes.
Paraguay, in sixth, are four points behind Argentina following back-to-back defeats against Colombia and Uruguay. Another loss here will see their view of the top five qualification places become even more blurry.
Argentina (4-2-3-1): Romero; Mercado, Demichelis, Musacchio, Rojo; Mascherano, Banega; Gaitan, Aguero, Di Maria; Higuain.
Paulo Dybala has dropped to the bench for Nicolas Gaitan, while in defence, Mateo Musacchio is introduced. Matias Kranevitter has also been replaced in midfield by Ever Banega.
Francisco Arce chooses Angel Romero and Derlis Gonzalez to lead the line for the visitors. Oscar Romero and Miguel Almiron will be tasked with providing the width in a 4-4-2 formation.
And that will do it for now from Cordoba, as Paraguay take a 1-0 lead into the break thanks to Gonzalez's finish on the counterattack. Argentina have created chances, but have lacked a real urgency in front of goal. A lot to play for in the second half, so stay tuned.
And that's it! Paraguay pick up a huge win in Argentina's back yard, courtesy of a Gonzalez goal in the first half. They close the gap on la Albiceleste in fifth to just a single point. Boos rain down over the players here in Cordoba as the home side falter again. That's all the time we've got, thanks for tuning in!
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