Venezuela will arrive at the National Stadium empowered because, unlike us, it has been having its best historical campaign in the South American Qualifiers after five dates (fourth with 8 points). If we do not improve the above, everything will continue in the same way. “shit.”as Renato Tapia said, who by the way also needs to immediately carry out self-criticism: “I think we played well“, he said in La Paz, hotly, while we Peruvians wonder what the team is trying to propose. And we must not forget, a key point, that this team is distancing itself from the people. The players still have back from the recent successful past, but, apparently, the coach does not.
Data from Peru in its first five matches for the 2026 Qualifiers |
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Last in the standings |
Only country without registering victories |
Only team without goals in favor |
Team with the most losses |
Team with worst goal difference |
Selection with fewer shots on goal |
Equipment with less effectiveness |
Selection with fewer points at home |
Second team with the most shots against |
The central couple
During his 13 games in charge of the ‘sele’, Reynoso put different names in the defense. Miguel Araujo, Luis Abram, Anderson Santamaría, even Renato Tapia, whom he placed in an emergency situation in his debut with Paraguay in the Qualifiers, passed by. However, he had not had the possibility of bringing together Carlos Zambrano and Alexander Callens, the starters par excellence, especially in the last stage of Ricardo Gareca. If one was on the court, the other was not, whether due to injury or technical decision.
In La Paz the long-awaited premiere of both finally took place, but it turned out to be a fiasco. Zambrano confirmed that he is not in physical fitness, very lacking in rhythm, timing, and having direct responsibility for the first Bolivian goal: he did not cut a pass between the lines, precisely because of his previously exposed deficiencies that were already evident in League 1 Betsson with Alianza Lima. Callens, for his part, is quite far from the level we are used to with the national team. He appears in the photo of the two goals, and his mortal sin was not pressing, overtaking, cutting off the line of the shot, to his rivals.
Both had a passing effectiveness below 80%, a terrible percentage for two centre-backs, who generally have many easy passes. In short, it was the worst match for both of them since they debuted together in 2014, and they have totaled 10 matches so far: four wins, two draws and four losses. Now, who plays against Venezuela? Reynoso has to realize that Zambrano is not 100%, beyond his hierarchy and what he represents for the team. Converting Tapia into a defender on the right and the question of Callens or Abram on the left must be on Reynoso’s mind right now.
The reliable ’10’
It is alarming that people continue to talk about Christian Cueva, someone who today is a foot and a half away from Alianza Lima and is very far from being called up again, when we ask ourselves who should pull the strings of the ‘sele’. Those who most took up the mantle of ‘Aladino’, who clearly made the position his own during Ricardo Gareca’s time, were Christofer Gonzales, André Carrillo and Sergio Peña during these 13 Reynoso games. Each one with virtues and shortcomings, in different schemes, but in common they had the role of being the handle. Of course, none of them transcended and today the big question is: who makes Peru play?
In La Paz, Piero Quispe was the great revelation. The current champion of League 1 Betsson with Universitario did not hesitate in the responsibility, even in the context of the bicolor’s poor play, and this is demonstrated by his statistics: he completed the entire match, his passes were 95% effective, he won nine of 10 ground duels and hit two of his three long passes. To be his official debut with the bicolor, the 22-year-old boy did not look out of place and puts pressure on to repeat the dish against Venezuela.
At more than 3,600 meters high, Quispe often secured the ball in chaotic moments of the game, even better than Yoshimar Yotún and Renato Tapia, the other two who also had that function. The richness of his technique was exposed in the Bolivian capital, as he left more than one highlander in a bad position in some of his dribbles. He always asked for it, he never hid and faced it. His debt is to be consistent and also to be specific. That his role is not just an organizer.
How are goals scored?
Reynoso has the title of being the first coach of the national team to go five games without scoring in the history of the Qualifiers. He is also the first to record four consecutive defeats and, of course, without scoring. Regrettable, right? But attacking the problem, it is inexplicable how we can have only one shot on goal in five games. A total of 571 minutes passed –thanks to Gianluca Lapadula’s header at 43′ of the first half in Bolivia–, the longest drought for a South American team in the entire history of the competition.
“With what the statistics tell me, what can I tell you? It is a matter of interpretation about what archery is, it should be a very simple topic. I saw that we shot at the goal, maybe they didn’t go to the goal. Chile could have shot three and Pedro Gallese grabbed, but today the statistics talk more about goal expectations”said Reynoso after the loss against Chile, an excuse that lacked self-criticism on the issue of lack of effectiveness in front of goal.
Looking ahead to Tuesday against Venezuela, it is too early to think that much can be done on offense to improve miraculously. But this is football and, especially, Paolo Guerrero and Gianluca Lapadula are the ones called to end this terrible record, which condemns us as the only South American team that did not score in its first five games in the Conmebol Qualifiers. Reynoso has already warned that he can start with Paolo and ‘Lapa’ as a double striker, and against Venezuela the test could take place. “They are two that give us weight in the area and, depending on the moment of the game, we will try to capture it”, he assured.
- The red and white in their first five qualifying matches since the current format is played (all against all).
Qualifiers | Points | Goals |
---|---|---|
France 1998 | 3 | 6 |
Korea-Japan 2002 | 4 | 4 |
Germany 2006 | 5 | 6 |
South Africa 2010 | 3 | 3 |
Brazil 2014 | 3 | 6 |
Russia 2018 | 4 | 6 |
Qatar 2022 | 1 | 4 |
United States Mexico Canada 2026 | 1 | 0 |
Failed system changes
In Bolivia –and with the result against–, Reynoso once again opted for the line of three at the back, as happened in a friendly against Germany that turned out to be a fiasco. The team does not feel comfortable with this rethinking nor are there players with the necessary characteristics to sustain it. Every time he proposed it during a match, friendly or official, he always ended up correcting it on the fly because the situation got worse, as happened – we repeat – in La Paz. There were up to three system changes and five different alignments during the game against the highlands, which for a change didn’t quite work either. “My perspective of the three-point line is not to defend”, he said in his first talks to the press.
The surprising Venezuela of Fernando Batista has been proposing a 4-3-3 in its last two home games, appearing compact in all its lines and with an excellent figure like Yeferson Soteldo, this being a winger on the left. In Lima, and considering how irregular Peru is, perhaps they will maintain their attacking proposal to seek the three points. Today, for them, we are an ideal place to earn a visit. The most likely thing is that Reynoso will test his 4-2-3-1 to face the ‘Vinotinto’ or if he wants to be more risky with the 4-4-2 to generate attack, his main debt. But enough of so many experiments and sudden changes on the fly.
Gallese and 10 more
It is enough to analyze one piece of information to realize the current level of confusion of Reynoso and his technical command: Nilson Loyola, Andy Polo and Anderson Santamaría, starters against Argentina, were not even on the list of 23 called up against Bolivia. And only a month passed from match to match. There is no backbone, that is, there are doubts about the central defenders, the holding midfielders, the creator and the ‘9’. Except for Pedro Gallese, who by the way is Peru’s best in these first five games, he is the only one who knows he is a starter. In a year and three months at the helm of the bicolor, Reynoso did not find an ’11’ base, a problem that has finally been his cross and perhaps the answer to why we are last.
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