Paraguay holds a 1-0 lead over Turkey at half-time in their FIFA World Cup 2026 Group D clash despite being reduced to 10 men just before the break.
Paraguay made the perfect start when Matías Galarza found the back of the net after just 1 minute and 5 seconds.
His goal is currently the fastest goal scored at the FIFA World Cup 2026 and the earliest by a South American team at the tournament since Paraguay's Celso Ayala scored after 52 seconds against Nigeria in 1998.
Turkey pushed for an equaliser but was unable to break through the Paraguayan defence during the opening 45 minutes.
Paraguay suffered a setback in injury time of the first half when Miguel Almirón was shown a red card, meaning they will play the entire second half with 10 players.
Paraguay is featuring in its ninth FIFA World Cup and is looking to reach the knockout stages for the first time since the 2010 tournament in South Africa, where it reached the quarter-finals.
Turkey is making its third FIFA World Cup appearance after previously competing in 1954 and 2002, where it achieved its best-ever result by finishing third.
Paraguay came into the match looking to bounce back from a 4-1 loss to the USA in its opening Group D fixture, while Turkey is seeking its first points after a 2-0 defeat to Australia in its tournament opener.
Meanwhile, earlier today Brazil secured a convincing 3-0 victory over Haiti, Morocco defeated Scotland 1-0 while the USA beat Australia 2-0.
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Source: BBC Sports
