Sunderland There has been some hope that Omar Alderete may still play against France. It comes after Paraguay manager Gustavo Alfaro offered a more encouraging update on the defender's fitness.
Earlier this week, RReports from Paraguay suggest the Sunderland centre-back remains a major doubt. This came after he missed Paraguay's last World Cup match due to injury.
However, Alfaro's latest comments suggest there is still a real chance that Alderete could play some role in Saturday's last-16 clash.
The 29-year-old has been sidelined since suffering a hamstring injury during Paraguay's group-stage draw with Australia on June 26. As a result, this caused them to miss the victory over Germany.
Paraguay boss gave the latest situation
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, relayed by vs game In Paraguay, Alfaro revealed that Alderete made positive progress on Thursday, although he did not take part in full training with the rest of the team.
He said: "Yesterday he did a good job, but he didn't do anything on the pitch. He demanded physical effort and he responded well to everything he did."
"It seems like Omar has been injured forever, but that was only a week ago!"
He told that Friday's training session will be decisive.
“We will see how he reacts, how he feels and how he reacts to the workload to decide whether we can keep him with us from the start or whether he can be available as a substitute.”
Alderete is looking forward to playing
Omar Alderete has made it clear he wants to be involved against France despite injury.
Alfaro revealed that the Sunderland defender had personally told him: "Coach, I don't want to miss this match."
The Paraguay boss praises the player's determination. Still, he insists that emotions will not influence his decision.
"He wants to play, but he also knows that in a match like this we can't hold anything back. This is a game that will require huge physical effort."
For this reason, Paraguay will only include Alderete if they are confident he is physically ready, with Alfaro making it clear there will be no unnecessary risks.
However, a final decision will only come after Friday's training session, with Paraguay carrying out a late assessment before deciding whether the Sunderland defender is fit enough to start, play from the bench or sit out once again.
