On Tuesday, Bolivar will open their round of 16 tie at the Copa Libertadores by welcoming Athletico Paranaense to Estadio Hernando Siles for the first time.
In the group stage of this tournament, La Academia reeled off four victories, finishing second behind Palmeiras with 12 points, while El Paranaense topped their group with 13 points, three more than Atletico Mineiro.
Match preview
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The Bolivian hopes of glory at this year's Copa Libertadores rest squarely on the shoulders of Bolivar, who performed well in the group portion of this competition, winning all three of their home fixtures by a combined score of 6-1.
They beat some formidable opponents at home in the opening round as well, defeating a Palmeiras side (3-1) that have won two of the previous three editions of this tournament, while the Bolivians also edged Barcelona (1-0), a side that had made it to the semi-finals in 2021.
Thanks to those strong performances, the record 30-time Bolivian Primera Division winners have qualified for the last 16 of this tournament for the first time since 2014, becoming the first club from the region to make it this far since Jorge Wilstermann were knocked out at this stage by Libertad in 2020 (5-1 on aggregate).
Back in 2014, Bolivar made it into the semi-finals, their best-ever finish at this tournament, while they have only lost two of their last six round-of-16 matches played in the Libertadores this century.
Benat San Jose has seen his side go unbeaten in their last seven home matches in all competitions, and his attacking unit have been deadly in La Paz, scoring three goals in three successive league fixtures played at Estadio Hernando Siles.
Bolivar have not beaten a Brazilian opponent in the knockout stage of this competition since 2012 (2-1 win over Santos), while they possess a 100% record at home in this phase of the Libertadores versus clubs from the Brasileiro Serie A.
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After suffering a heartbreaking 1-0 defeat in the 2022 final of this tournament versus Flamengo, Athletico are back in the knockout stage of this competition for the third time this decade.
Furacao have only lost one of their previous four round of 16 fixtures in this competition, while interim manager Wesley Carvalho recently captured his first away victory since taking charge of this team, when Paranaense defeated Vasco da Gama 2-0 earlier in July.
Since being knocked out by River Plate at this stage of the 2020 Copa Libertadores, Athletico have advanced from every last 16 tie in this competition, as well as the Copa Sudamericana and the Copa do Brasil.
Heading into this encounter, El Paranaense have only conceded once in their previous four Libertadores matches combined, while they have given up just one opening-half goal on the road in the group stage.
They have only captured one competitive victory away from home versus a Bolivian opponent, erasing a pair of one-goal deficits to edge Jorge Wilstermann 3-2 in a 2020 group encounter.
Athletico have only faced Bolivar twice before, and Furacao have yet to beat La Academia despite having a 5-1 lead against them in a 2002 Libertadores group fixture, conceding four times in the final 31 minutes as both sides played to a thrilling 5-5 draw.
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Team News
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Jose made two changes to the Bolivar starting 11 from matchday five to six in this competition, with Jesus Sagredo and Fernando Saucedo coming into the opening lineup instead of Diego Bejarano and Lucas Chavez.
Bejarano, Gabriel Villamil and Ronnie Fernandez each scored twice for this team in the group phase of this competition to lead the way, while Carlos Lampe had three clean sheets over that span, two of which came on home soil.
El Paranaense will be without Fernando Bueno for the remainder of the season after he tore his ACL, Romulo and Alex Santana might each be available despite previously sustaining an unknown issue and a foot problem, respectively, Pedro Henrique is not expected to return from a broken ankle until late September and Christian Cardoso is a couple of weeks away from being fully healed from his thigh injury.
Vitor Roque led this team with three goals in the group phase, Sanatana notched two, while Bento had three clean sheets, including two in their last two Libertadores fixtures.
Bolivar possible starting lineup:
Lampe; Bejarano, Bentaberry, Ferreyra, Jesus Sagredo; Saucedo, Justiniano; Villamil, Vaca, Hervias; Ronnie Fernandez
Athletico Paranaense possible starting lineup:
Bento; Madson, Heleno, Ivaldo; Khellven, Erick, Fernandinho, Christian; Bueno, Zapelli; Roque
We say: Bolivar 2-1 Athletico Paranaense
On paper, Athletico have a side that we believe are superior to Bolivar, but something about the atmosphere in La Paz seems to bring out the best in the home team, and that, along with their splendid goalkeeping, might be enough for them to create a big surprise.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
