For the first time at the Copa Sudamericana, Cerro Porteno and Athletico Paranaense will face each other in the round of 32, with the opening leg taking place on Thursday at General Pablo Rojas Stadium in Asuncion.
The 34-time champions of Paraguay were relegated to this competition after finishing third in their Copa Libertadores group, while El Paranaense wound up second in Group E at this tournament behind Sportivo Ameliano.
Match preview
© Reuters
Needing a win to make the knockout stage of the Copa Libertadores, Porteno failed to deliver on their final matchday, playing to a 1-1 draw with Colo-Colo.
The consolation prize for Manolo Jimenez and his team is that they are in this tournament for the first time since 2016-17, while they have made it to at least the last 16 in their previous three Sudamericana appearances.
In the 2024 Libertadores group stage, El Azulgrana went undefeated on home soil, conceding only once in those three fixtures.
El Ciclon have not lost the first match of a two-leg tie at this tournament since Independiente Santa Fe defeated them 2-0 in their opening round of 16 clash in 2016.
It has been nearly a decade since they lost a knockout fixture at home in this competition when Boca Juniors beat them 4-1 in November 2014 at Estadio Defensores del Chaco.
They have won two of their three home games versus Brazilian opponents at this tournament, all in 2009 when the Paraguayans made the semi-finals before losing both of their matches against Fluminense.
© Reuters
Athletico Paranaense looked unstoppable through the first four matches at this tournament but began to fade near the end of the group phase.
Furacao won their first four matches by a combined margin of 16-2 but lost their final two group contests by a single goal each time, missing out on an automatic place in the last 16 by a single point.
In his first match in charge of this team over the weekend, Martin Varini saw Paranaense advance into the next stage of the Copa do Brasil thanks to an impressive 3-0 triumph over Yprianga.
The man who guided Defensor Sporting to the 2023 Copa Uruguay crown inherits a squad that have won consecutive away contests in the Brasileiro Serie A while winning their three road matches in the Sudamericana group stage.
This team have thrived in knockout ties at the Sudamericana, lifting the trophy in their previous two appearances in 2021 and 2018.
Only once have they faced Cerro Porteno in a continental club competition, with El Paranaense winning a thrilling last-16 tie against them on penalties at the 2005 Copa Libertadores after the aggregate score was even at 3-3.
Team News
© Reuters
Bruno Valdez and Lucas Quintana are unlikely to see the field for Cerro Porteno on Thursday because of cruciate ligament tears, while Alan Benitez was red-carded in their final group fixture at the Libertadores.
Federico Carrizo led them with two goals in the Libertadores group stage this year, while Jean collected two clean sheets, both on home soil.
Felipinho could be out for Paranaense this week due to an illness, Nikao has a thigh injury, while Agustin Canobbio will be available after helping Uruguay capture the bronze medal at the Copa America.
Gonzalo Mastriani leads them with five goals in this tournament, though Lucas Di Yorio scored the last one for them in a 2-1 defeat versus Danubio on matchday five.
Cerro Porteno possible starting lineup:
Jean; Cabanas, Baez, Brock, De Jesus, Arzamendia; Iturbe, Piris Da Mota, Dominguez; Churin, Carrizo
Athletico Paranaense possible starting lineup:
Bento; Godoy, Rocha, Heleno, Esquivel; Erick, Fernandinho; Zapelli, Canobbio, Cuello; Mastriani
We say: Cerro Porteno 0-1 Athletico Paranaense
It has been over two weeks since Porteno last played in a competitive game, and given the long layoff, we expect it may take them a while to find a foothold in this one.
Paranaense do not seem to be phased with these knockout fixtures, and we expect them to eventually find a breakthrough against what could be a pesky backline.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joel Lefevre
