In front of him will be a Junior that is not shining in the Colombian tournament, but that knew how to win a group that it shared with a former champion of the tournament like Liga de Quito and with the Brazilian Botafogo.
The winner will face the winner of the Argentine tie made up of River Plate and Talleres.
The ‘Cacique’ He set out to improve his international performance, and to do so he reinforced himself with the veteran Arturo Vidal, former player of teams such as Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Juventus.
In the last transfer window he bolstered the team with the Chilean full-back Mauricio Isla (Juventus, Flamengo) and the Argentine forward Javier Correa (Racing, Estudiantes).
“The level of the reinforcements is as high as ever. What Colo Colo has done is spectacular; bringing in players of that quality makes you want to keep going,” Vidal said in the preview against Junior.
The team started this season with the outstanding coach Jorge Almirón, who at the helm of Boca Juniors played the final of the last edition of the Libertadores, in which they fell to Fluminense.
Despite their poor scoring record, the Chileans managed to overcome the group stage barrier after six years.
The Barranquilla team has had a dream return to the Copa Libertadores. After a three-year absence from the international tournament, they managed to win Group D undefeated.
He also has fond memories of the game against Colo Colo. The only time they met in the Libertadores was in the round of 16 of the tournament in 1994. That year they tied both ties, but Junior qualified for the quarterfinals thanks to penalties.
The Colombians are more rested for the tie, and midfielder Víctor Cantillo warned beforehand that the physical condition of his players could tip the balance.
“Our wide players are much faster than them on the wings and with space we can create more danger and win this match,” Cantillo said.
Other duels
On the other hand, burdened by poor results, the Argentine team San Lorenzo will face a risky test when they host Atlético Mineiro in an attractive first leg match for the round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores, at the Nuevo Gasómetro.
El Ciclón is coming off a 1-0 loss in stoppage time at home against Atlético Tucumán in the local league, a result that left the azulgrana in 25th place among 28 teams.
San Lorenzo’s bad moment and last Saturday’s defeat forced coach Leandro Romagnoli to resign, but the Ciclón’s coach was confirmed by the management, so the cup series appears as the last chance to straighten the rudder of a season that has been below expectations.
The match will be played on Tuesday at 7:30 pm at the Nuevo Gasómetro, with Uruguayan referee Gustavo Tejera.
Gremio de Porto Alegre and Fluminense also open the round of 16 in a Brazilian duel between two teams that have clearly recovered in recent weeks, after a disastrous start in the Brasileirao.
Unable to play at home due to the historic floods that hit Porto Alegre at the end of April and left the pitch unplayable, Gremio initially felt the pain of not being able to play in front of its passionate fans, something it will not be able to do against ‘Flu’ either.
Gremio have reacted in the last few rounds of the Brasileirao, adding 13 of the last 15 points and leaving the relegation zone, where they had remained for weeks.
Gremio and Fluminense will meet in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores at 5:00 pm at the Couto Pereira in Curitiba (south), and will be coached by Argentine Darío Herrera.