The eagerly-awaited semi-finals of the Copa Sudamericana will get underway this week, with Corinthians taking on Fortaleza at the Neo Quimica Arena on Wednesday.
Brazil will be guaranteed a Brasileiro representative in the final of this competition for the third year in succession, and they will take on either Ecuadorian outfit LDU Quito or Primera Division's Defensa y Justicia on October 28.
Match preview
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Corinthians came into this tournament after failing to crack the top two places in the group stages of the Copa Libertadores, finishing on seven points and behind Independiente del Valle and Argentinos Juniors.
After dropping to this competition, they proved to be too good for Universitario, beating them 3-1 and held off Newell's Old Boys in the last 16 before needing penalties to settle the quarter-final tie against Estudiantes.
While their cup form has been solid, their performances in the league have been less impressive, as they are currently in 10th place and 10 points behind Athletico Paranaense, who occupy the final Copa Libertadores qualifier places.
In addition, these two sides met in the league only a fortnight ago, and Fortaleza claimed a 2-1 win on their home patch, which might give them a slight psychological edge heading into this encounter.
However, Vanderlei Luxemburgo's side can still take confidence from having beaten runaway league leaders Botafogo 1-0 over the weekend and are now unbeaten at home in their last 11 matches in all competitions.
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Meanwhile, Fortaleza have been very good in this competition as they topped their group with 15 points in six matches and earned their spot in the final four by dispatching America Mineiro 5-2 on aggregate in the last round.
Noticeably, Juan Pablo Vojvoda's side have begun to find very good rhythm in their play heading into the business end of the season, winning seven of their last eight matches in all competitions.
The visitors followed that win over this opponent with another 2-1 victory against Sao Paulo last week, which saw them maintain eighth place in a very compact Brasileiro mid-table and remain in the hunt for a Copa Libertadores automatic qualification spot.
Fortaleza have been the dominant side in this encounter in the recent past as they boast a three-match unbeaten streak against Corinthians dating back to May 2022, and if they get at least a draw here, you feel it will be surprising not to see them go on to reach the final.
Team News
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Luxemburgo has three players unavailable, with Paulinho (knee), Giovane and Roni (both ankle) all ruled out through injury.
The Corinthians boss has shuffled between a 4-4-2 and 4-3-3 formation over the last few games, although he is likely to favour the former here with Yuri Alberto and Pedrinho in attack.
Vojvoda is without Pedro Rocha and Hercules, as the pair are still out with serious ligament injuries and expected to remain sidelined for a while longer.
Fortaleza have been unchanged in their last two matches, which resulted in victories, and we could see the same 11 take the field here with Marinho, Juan Martin Lucero and Guilherme Augusto at the top-end of a 4-3-3 formation.
Corinthians possible starting lineup:
Cassio; Fagner, Verissimo, Caetano, Santos; Barberan, Moscardo, Augusto, Rojas; Alberto, Pedrinho
Fortaleza possible starting lineup:
Ricardo; Tinga, Britez, Titi, Pacheco; Alexandre, Welison, Pochettino; Marinho, Lucero, Augusto
We say: Corinthians 1-1 Fortaleza
While the visitors did grab a 2-1 win over this opponent a couple of weeks ago, Timao are a difficult side to beat at the Neo Quimica Arena, where they sport an 11-match unbeaten streak.
Neither side will want to be behind heading into the second leg, and we feel they will likely end up settling for a share of the spoils.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Devesh Jaganath
