Roberto Fernández

Roberto Fernández, known throughout his career as Gatito, is one of Paraguay's most experienced goalkeepers and a long-serving presence in the national team. At 38, the Cerro Porteño keeper brings a calm, senior head to a Paraguay side built on defensive structure, and his shot-stopping has kept him among the country's goalkeeping options over a long career.

Tall and commanding at 1.91m, he organises those in front of him and reads the game from the back. His penalty-saving has long been one of his trademarks for Paraguay, the kind of edge that can settle a tight match, and that authority gives the back line a steady figure behind them as the team heads to the World Cup on the back of a resilient qualifying campaign.

Fernández is a goalkeeper whose game is built on shot-stopping and command of his area. At 1.91m he is a presence in the air on crosses, and his reading of the game means he is rarely caught out of position. His handling and distribution help Paraguay settle and start moves from deep.

Penalty situations are where his reputation was made, a specialist edge in the moments that decide tight matches. For a Paraguay side that defends in numbers and keeps games low-scoring, a goalkeeper of his experience and composure is the steadying last line they can lean on.

Fernández's value to a Goal Rush selection comes from resistance: shot-stopping, penalty-saving and the calm of an experienced goalkeeper behind a compact Paraguay defence. Paraguay sit in Tier 4 at £10m within the game's £200m card budget, with Group D bringing the United States, Turkey and Australia in the opening schedule.

The payoff case is defensive rather than scoring-led. If Gustavo Alfaro's 4-2-3-1 keeps matches tight, Fernández can make the Paraguay card feel more credible by protecting small margins and giving the back line authority in high-pressure passages.