Paolo Guerrero scored a second-half hat-trick as Peru claimed third place at the Copa America with a 4-1 win over Venezuela.
Peru claim third place at Copa America
Paolo Guerrero scored a second-half hat-trick as Peru claimed third place at the Copa America with a 4-1 win over Venezuela on Saturday.
Hamburg striker Guerrero, who is nicknamed 'Predator' was involved in the opener as William Chiroque fired home three minutes before the break before ripping the Venezuelans to pieces with a second-half showing which was helped by a sending-off for Venezuelan midfielder Tomas Rincon for a hard sliding tackle.
Guerrero drove in his second goal just after the hour mark and, after Juan Arango had briefly threatened a comeback by making it 2-1 in the 78th minute, Guerrero turned the screw with two further goals in time added on.
"We are happy to have clinched third place. We all fought hard for this," said Guerrero as Peru showed that under coach Sergio Markarian they have improved from the side which ended the last World Cup qualifying tournament bottom of their group.
The goals also made Guerrero the tournament's leading scorer with five, two more than Uruguay's Luis Suarez and Argentina's Sergio Aguero.
But he said that personal achievement was secondary to the win.
"I work for the team - they are the most important for me," he said.
Uruguay and Paraguay face each other in the final on Sunday.
