Flamengo vs Aucas

Rio de Janeiro’s iconic Maracana forms the backdrop for a ‘make or break’ Copa Libertadores Group A encounter between Flamengo and Aucas.

Flamengo’s Copa Libertadores campaign started with a whimper rather than a bang as they succumbed to a 2-1 defeat at non-other than Aucas on day one. However, the Brazilian giants have since gone from strength to strength, racking up a four-game unbeaten run in Group A (W2, D2) to move within a point from automatic knockout qualification. Indeed, three points clear of third-placed Nublense, Jorge Sampaoli’s men must avoid defeat here to progress into the knockouts on their own terms. But anything less than a victory would be a surprise, considering Flamengo are odds-on to avenge their day-one embarrassment after winning both previous Group A home matches by an aggregate score of 4-1. They were ahead at halftime in both triumphs, suggesting they could be flying out of the traps.

Meanwhile, Aucas’ stellar start to Group A looks like distant history after an underwhelming run of three defeats from their last four Copa Libertadores games condemned them to a bottom place in this section. It’s not all lost yet, though, as they trail third-placed Nublense by a point, meaning an unlikely triumph at the Maracana would fire them into the Copa Sudamericana knockout playoffs, provided the Chileans fail to beat table-topping Racing Club in the other fixture. In spite of hitting the net on both Group A travels thus far, the Ecuadorians have found themselves on the receiving end of high-scoring affairs on each occasion (L2), courtesy of goals conceded beyond the 80th minute. Furthermore, Cesar Farias’ men have lost five of their last six competitive away matches (D1), letting in 2+ goals in each defeat.