Goias (Brazil) vs Estudiantes (Argentina)
Goias EC will find it really tough to reverse the aggregate on Wednesday after a terrible performance at Estudiantes last week that resulted in a 3-0 away loss. On a positive note, the team celebrated a massive 1-0 home success over Fortaleza EC last Saturday to stay out of the relegation zone in the Brasileirao table: they accumulated 19 points, leading Santos (in 17th) by one after 18 rounds. Goias suffered a single loss across their last five competitive games, winning two and drawing two in that spell. Their last weekend’s win also broke a six-game winless streak as hosts (four stalemates and two defeats).
Estudiantes played one of their best games in 2023 last Wednesday, when they showed enjoyable football to secure a 3-0 home win over Goias EC and almost clinched their ticket to the quarter-finals. Still waiting for the Copa Liga Profesional to start on August 18th, El Pincha extended their winning streak to five competitive matches since losing away at River Plate 3-1 in mid July. Eduardo Dominguez’s men won at Argentinos Juniors 3-2 in their last road game to stop a five-match winless run of two stalemates and three losses as the visiting side.
Despite the big 3-0 of the 1st game, the game was very balanced until the 1st red card in the 2nd half. Estudiantes won’t have their two best striker, Carrillo and Bosselli due to injuries, so while I still expect them to advance, I think the hosts have a chance to win here.