Argentina will clash against Peru at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires on Thursday, October 14, 2021, at 7:30 PM (ET), in the South American World Cup Qualifiers 2022. This will be their 56th overall meeting. No surprises here as Argentina are the absolute favorites in head-to-head clashes, having celebrated a victory on 34 occasions so far; Peru have grabbed a triumph just seven times to this day, and a great number of even 14 games have ended in a draw.

Their most recent match was played on November 17, 2020, when La Albiceleste grabbed a comfortable 2-0 win away at the Stadion Nacional in Lima in their first clash in Matchday 4. It promises to be an even more exciting clash as these two countries clash for the first time this year, at the CONMEBOL World Cup 2022 Qualifiers.

Several key players of the Peruvian squad will miss this Matchday 12 clash, and veteran star Paolo Guerrero is one of them. Here you will find out why the 37-year-old Peru international is out of this matchup.

Why isn't Paolo Guerrero playing for Peru against Argentina?

Paolo Guerrero has traveled to Europe to treat his right knee which will sideline him from soccer action until 2022. The Peruvian's idea is to give full attention to the recovery of his right knee, which still hinders his best performance. So much so that the 37-year-old athlete plans a treatment in Germany and should only return to playing next year.

As a result, the veteran asked to be released from his club Internacional, terminating his contract.  Prior to the match against Bolivia on Matchday 5 of the Qatar 2022 Qualifiers, the Peruvian team announced that Guerrero would be ruled out for the October matches. In addition, even his presence in the November games has been put in huge doubt. 

After he tore the cruciate ligament in his right knee in 2020, the center forward underwent two surgeries. The last one should have definitely solved the problem. However, in an interview after the game against Chile, the 37-year-old striker confirmed that he is still suffering in pain.  In addition to him, Raul Ruidiaz, Andre Carrillo, Renato Tapia, Edison Flores, and Jordy Reyna have also been sidelined and they will have not joined the White and Red squad to face Argentina.