Colombia Holds Off Paraguay to Secure 2-1 Victory in Copa América Opener

Colombia Extends Unbeaten Streak to 24 Games with Hard-Fought Win over Paraguay

Colombia extends unbeaten streak to 24 games with 2-1 win over Paraguay in Copa América Group D opener. Daniel Muñoz and Jefferson Lerma score first-half goals; Paraguay's Julio Enciso pulls one back in second half. Colombia's impressive run continues with ninth straight victory.

Colombia's impressive unbeaten run has now reached 24 games, following their thrilling 2-1 victory over Paraguay in their Copa América Group D opener on Monday in Houston. The winning goals came courtesy of Daniel Muñoz and Jefferson Lerma, who led the team to a hard-fought win.

Colombia dominated the match from the start, with Muñoz and Lerma scoring crucial goals in the first half. Despite Paraguay's consolation goal from Julio Enciso, Colombia's solid performance earned them a well-deserved win.

“I'm very happy, it's important to start well today against a tough opponent like Paraguay,” James Rodríguez said in a post-match interview. “We could have done better in the second half, but you correct things better when the team wins, it's much easier that way.”

In the second half, Paraguay intensified their efforts, scoring a goal in the 69th minute through Enciso's powerful header. A controversial moment arose later when Gustavo Velázquez seemingly fouled Yerry Mina, but the referee reversed the penalty decision after consulting the VAR monitor.

“We worked from the first minute, looking for the match; we knew it wasn't going to be easy, even though the team is doing well and is in good form, so we had to counter Paraguay,” Rodríguez added. “Fortunately, we scored two goals that gave us a good lead to make it more difficult for them... We are calm. I have no doubt that we will have a very good tournament and we will continue like this.”

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Colombia effectively shut down Paraguay's attempts to equalize, securing their 2-1 victory. The teams will face new challenges in their upcoming matches, as Paraguay takes on Brazil in Las Vegas on Friday, while Colombia squares off against Costa Rica in Glendale, Arizona, on the same day. Later, on Monday, Brazil will clash with Costa Rica in California, promising another exciting encounter.

James Rodriguez won man of the match.