Venezuela vs Peru Predictions

Many neutrals looking for their fix of summer football could turn to a Peru side who won admirers in Russia last year. While Peru played only three games and won just three points in their matches at the last World Cup, they come into this summer’s Copa America hoping for better. They’ve lost narrowly in their last two appearances at this tournament, so will they be able to start off another solid run in the competition when they face Venezuela on Saturday night?

Venezuela doesn’t have a glittering history in football, having never made the World Cup. They only beat the group stage at the Copa America for the first time in 2007 when they hosted the competition. In recent years they’ve had a mixed time, going out in the group stage of the last proper Copa back in 2015. However, they do head into this tournament with a little bit of form backing them, having beaten the USA 3-0 in a friendly ahead of their opener.

Peru have had a mixed spell since their run to Russia, losing six times since dropping out of the World Cup. However, they still have the basis of the side which took them to the tournament, while manager Ricardo Gareca has stayed on after leading the country to their first World Cup since 1982. He has helped establish an attacking style, while he’s tasted success at the Copa America too. Gareca’s first tournament in charge saw them finish third, while they went out in the quarter-finals of the Copa Centenario in 2016.

Peru should be a side to watch this summer, as they look to make it out of a group which contains Brazil and Bolivia. Their big concern is their defence, as they’ve kept only two clean sheets in their last seven matches, having conceded too many chances. That was an obvious issue in Russia too, while Venezuela could exploit it. La Vinotinto have scored in 11 straight games, including that big win over the USA.

Peru do have a decent scoring record, having hit 10 goals in their last seven matches at the Copa America. They should look to get forward against Venezuela, while back to back 2-2 draws between these two suggest that they will put on a show in this clash. We’re backing both teams to score in this encounter, while we’re also backing a 1-1 final score.