For while David Beckham will feel his injury nightmare even more keenly as he is forced to watch the World Cup from the sidelines, Santa Cruz will be hoping this summer signals an end to his problems.

The Manchester City forward has made not much more than a handful of appearances this season following his £17.5million move from Blackburn but he is still set to spearhead the Paraguay attack, especially in the absence of star striker Salvador Cabanas.

Cabanas, Paraguay's top goalscorer during the qualifiers, was left clinging to life after he was shot in the head while in a bar in Mexico City.

The forward survived but still has a bullet in his head and will certainly play no part in the World Cup.

Team-mates have said it will be impossible to replace Cabanas and while Santa Cruz has no intention of trying to step into his shoes he will be hoping to don some goalscoring boots of his own.

"Paraguay have always had a reputation in South America for having one of the strongest defences on the continent," Santa Cruz told fifa.com.

"But lately we've also become known for our attacking qualities.

"This combination will make us hard to beat. This is probably the best national team in Paraguayan history, and we are hopeful of going further than the round of 16 for the first time.

"This is a great chance to show the world how much we've improved."

This is also a great chance for Santa Cruz to show the world how much he has improved.

Santa Cruz has always been feted in Paraguay and whichever country he plays his football in but his talents have rarely brought him much international recognition.

The then Olimpia forward burst onto the scene in 1999 when, aged just 17, he scored three goals for Paraguay at the Copa America.

That was also the year he won the Paraguayan footballer of the year award and earned himself a move to German giants Bayern Munich.

Santa Cruz had a disappointing first season but then swiftly established himself as a firm fans' favourite, so much so that a song was released about him entitled 'Ich, Roque' which is a play on his name as it also translates as 'I, rock'.

However, while the 28-year-old has long been known as the jewel in the Paraguay team's crown - and he is just five goals away from beating Jose Saturnino Cardozo's goalscoring record - his appearances on world football's biggest stage have been something of a disappointment.

Santa Cruz scored on his first World Cup appearance against South Africa in 2002 but failed to set the tournament alight before Paraguay went out to Germany in the second round.

Four years later he had been hampered by injury in the run-up and was nowhere near his best as his side slumped out at the group stage - although he could have taken slight consolation in being voted the World Cup's sexiest player.

Santa Cruz has once again been hindered by injury ahead of this summer's competition but he is confident of putting on a good display.

"It was better for me in 2002," he said.

"I got there young but I was in good shape and scored, so it certainly was one of the highlights.

"2006 was a bit more sad to remember. I had a bad injury - I did my cruciate five months before the tournament and I just got in good shape to play. But I couldn't reach my level of football so I wasn't so happy.

"I want to make this World Cup the best one for me, so I do have massive expectations in being there."