Estudiantes and Godoy Cruz return to action in the Argentine Primera Division when they go head to head at the Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi on Monday.
Still licking their wounds from their Copa Libertadores exit, Los Pincharratas will head into the game looking to pick up a morale-boosting result and make it two consecutive home wins to start the new league campaign.
Match preview
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Estudiantes were left spitting feathers on in their final Copa Libertadores group-stage fixture as they suffered a 4-3 defeat against Chilean outfit Huachipato at the Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi on Thursday.
With nothing to separate the two sides heading into the final minutes of the game, midfielder Carlo Villanueva grabbed the headlines as he netted the all-important goal in the fifth minute of stoppage time to fire the visitors into the knockout stages.
With Gremio stunning The Strongest with a 4-0 victory in the other Group C fixture, the midweek loss to Huachipato saw Los Pincharratas crash to the bottom of the table, bringing their quest for continental glory to an early end.
Prior to that, Eduardo Dominguez's men saw their 100% record in the new Primera Division campaign come to an end as they suffered a 2-1 loss against 10-man Lanus at the Ciudad de Lanus on May 25.
However, Estudiantes will be backing themselves to stop the rot and return to winning ways as they take on an opposing side who they have beaten in each of their last three league meetings, scoring six goals and keeping two clean sheets since a 2-1 loss in August 2019.
Godoy Cruz, on the other hand, turned in a performance of the highest quality on Wednesday when they cruised to a huge 4-0 victory over third-division side El Porvenir in their Copa Argentina round-of-32 clash.
In a heated contest at the Estadio Julio Cesar Villagra where both sides finished with 10 men, Martin Pino, Tomas Badaloni, Nicolas Fernandez and Silvio Ulariaga all found the back of the net to hand the visitors a comfortable victory.
This was a much-needed respite for Godoy Cruz, who had failed to win any of their previous four outings, a run which saw their Copa de la Liga playoff campaign come to an end in the quarter-finals courtesy of a 2-1 loss against Velez Sarsfield on April 21.
Manager Daniel Oldra will hope that their midweek victory can serve as a springboard for a solid run of form as his side return to action in the Primera Division, where they kicked off the campaign with a 1-0 home loss against Barracas Central on May 11, one week before playing out a goalless draw with Independiente Rivadavia.
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Team News
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Estudiantes remain without the services of Chilean midfielder Javier Altamirano, who has been out of action since March, when the picked up a severe head injury.
He is joined on the club's injury table by 33-year-old forward Guido Carrillo, who was forced off injured inside the opening 20 minutes of the midweek game against Huachipato.
In his absence, former Valencia and Espanyol man Pablo Piatti should come into the XI, forming the front three with 26-year-old Edwuin Cetre and Javier Correa, who has three goals in his last three matches.
Godoy Cruz, meanwhile, will take to the pitch without 26-year-old forward Juan Bautista Cejas, who is currently suspended after picking up a red card in their midweek cup victory.
On the injury front, the visitors will have to cope without the duo of Facundo Altamira and Braian Salvareschi, who are currently recuperating from muscle and foot injuries respectively.
Estudiantes possible starting lineup:
Mansilla; Mancuso, Romero, Lollo, Benedetti; Ascacibar, Sosa, Zuqui; Cetre, Correa, Piatti
Godoy Cruz possible starting lineup:
Petroli; Arce, Barrios, Rasmussen, Galdames; Leyes, Poggi; Conechny, Fernandez, Cejas; Ulariaga
We say: Estudiantes 2-1 Godoy Cruz
Following their Copa Libertadores exit, Estudiantes will head into Monday's tie looking to return to winning ways and restore some pride. Godoy Cruz have struggled to get going on their travels and we are tipping the hosts to come away with all three points, albeit by the odd goal.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
