SANTA CLARA, June 20 -- Paraguay boosted their chances of reaching the knockout stage of the FIFA World Cup 2026 with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Turkiye on Friday, despite playing much of the match with 10 men.

The crucial win keeps Paraguay's qualification hopes alive while also confirming that co-hosts the United States will finish as winners of Group D. The defeat, meanwhile, eliminated Turkiye from the tournament, making them only the second team after Haiti to be knocked out of contention.

Paraguay made a dream start when Matias Galarza scored the only goal of the match after just 63 seconds. His low long-range effort slipped past Turkish goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir to give Paraguay an early lead.

The South Americans suffered a s...