Socceroo Jackson Irvine has supported Fifa’s choice to dismiss players who cover their mouths while speaking, following the historic red card issued to Paraguay winger Miguel Almirón against Turkey.

The Socceroos and Paraguay will contest second place in the group at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium on Thursday (Friday AEST). A defeat for either side would trigger a tense wait to learn whether they advance among the eight best third-placed teams from the 12 groups.

Almirón became the first player sent off under a Fifa rule introduced for this tournament to curb the habit of players shielding their mouths during confrontations. His absence from Paraguay’s final Group D fixture offers a boost to the Socceroos.

Irvine, who sits on Fifpro’s global player council, noted that players received prior notice and defended the measure. “I know it’s going to be controversial in some ways because we don’t know the nature of what [the comment] was, but when you look at what’s happened in the past, especially around what happened with Vinícius Júnior, I think it takes everything out of the equation.”

The most prominent case of this conduct occurred earlier this year when Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni directed remarks at Real Madrid’s Júnior while covering his mouth with his shirt.

The referee did not dismiss Prestianni during the Champions League match, and video review could not evaluate the on-field actions, yet he later received a six-match ban for homophobic language.

The International Football Association Board, which sets the laws of the game, endorsed the red-card sanction for such behaviour in April.

Irvine stated that Almirón has no grounds for complaint. “If you’re saying something to someone that you don’t want to be seen, then I think it’s safe to say that if you can’t be seen saying it, then it shouldn’t be said,” he said. “For me, it’s a clear line on the rule, and we were all told about it, so it is what it is.”

Despite missing Almirón, Paraguay arrive with momentum from their 1-0 win over Turkey. They must beat the Socceroos to move into second place in Group D, though third place could still secure knockout qualification depending on other results.

Australia has never defeated a South American team at a World Cup, and Irvine anticipates a physical, skilful and unpredictable opponent. He described the contest as “just a totally different type of game” compared with matches against Turkey and the USA, highlighting the Paraguay players’ “incredible individual quality”.

“Watching Paraguay against Turkey last night, there was a sequence towards the end of the game that sums up their style of football,” he said. “It was with about five minutes to go, and they had won the ball back high up the pitch, and they had a chance to go to the corner. The guy just whips the cross into the back stick with three guys, and they try and score again with 10 men and they’re 1-0 up. Expect the unexpected. I guess that’s probably the best way to put it.”

Irvine said the Socceroos must start more effectively against Paraguay than they did against the USA. “The main thing that we have to get better from the first half is just being able to come into the duels and arrive - in the physical side of the game - a little bit better, and ride through those difficult moments,” he said.

“We’re playing against top teams at the highest level, but they’re going to have moments where you’re going to have to defend and we’re going to have to suffer and you’ve got to find ways to get through that.”