Uruguay faces Peru on Matchday 17 of the South American 2026 World Cup Qualifiers. This match has different implications for each team. Uruguay is close to securing their World Cup spot, while Peru is trying to keep their hopes alive.
Currently, Uruguay is in fourth place with 24 points, tied with Paraguay. Marcelo Bielsa’s team needs just one point from the last two games to qualify. Even if Uruguay loses, they could still make it if Venezuela does not beat Argentina.
In contrast, Peru is in a tough situation. Oscar Ibañez’s team is in ninth place with 12 points. They must win both remaining matches against Uruguay and Paraguay to have a shot at the playoffs.
However, simply winning may not be enough. Peru needs Venezuela to lose both matches by significant margins and finish with zero points, while also needing Bolivia to earn no more than one point in their final two games. It’s a challenging scenario, but anything can happen in soccer.
Pedro Gallese of Peru during the 2026 World Cup Qualifier game vs Argentina. (Daniel Jayo/Getty Images)
Uruguay’s probable lineup
Marcelo Bielsa aims to secure qualification against Peru, needing at least one point. However, Uruguay will miss several key players: Ronald Araujo, Nahitan Nandez, and Darwin Nuñez are suspended, and Maximiliano Araujo is out due to injury.
Given this, Uruguay’s expected starting lineup against Peru could be: Sergio Rochet; Guillermo Varela, Sebastian Caceres, Mathias Olivera, Joaquin Piquerez; Federico Valverde, Rodrigo Bentancur; Giorgian De Arrascaeta, Facundo Pellistri, Brian Rodriguez; Rodrigo Aguirre.
Peru’s probable lineup
Peru is also missing important players. Paolo Guerrero and Andre Carrillo are injured, and Edison Flores and Alex Valera are unavailable. Andy Polo is questionable due to a muscle issue.
Thus, Peru’s probable starting lineup against Uruguay could be: Pedro Gallese; Luis Advincula, Renzo Garces, Luis Abram, Marcos Lopez; Erick Noriega, Yoshimar Yotun; Kevin Quevedo, Christofer Gonzales, Kenji Cabrera; Luis Ramos.