ASUNCION, June 4 (Xinhua) -- Paraguay manager Gustavo Alfaro said Thursday his team will enter the FIFA World Cup with nothing to lose as it ends a 16-year absence from football's showpiece.

"We don't have expectations, we have hope," Alfaro told reporters ahead of the team's last warm-up match against Nicaragua in Asuncion on Friday.

"I know what this country feels, I know what 16 long years of waiting, frustration, sorrow and curses are like, what it's like to watch a World Cup on television. I'm not going to ask any Paraguayan to be rational."

Paraguay will begin its World Cup campaign against co-host the United States on June 12 before facing Trkiye and Australia in Group D.

Alfaro said his team would not be overawed by the occasion despite its underdog status.

"On the contrary, because that excitement doesn't intimidate us, it's the energy that drives us," he said. "If we feel we can have a good World Cup, it's because of what the people transmit to us, not because of the abilities we may have."

Alfaro has led Paraguay to eight wins, six draws and four defeats since taking charge in August 2024.

The Argentine helped the team recover from a shaky start to the qualifying campaign to secure one of South America's six automatic World Cup places.

He promised perseverance and tenacity from his players during the tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

"We are prepared to fight, we are prepared to give our hearts, we are prepared to leave everything on the field, to honor our history," he added.