River Plate, one of the main candidates for the Copa Libertadores, will face a do-or-die mission when they host Vélez Sarsfield on Wednesday in the second leg of the round of 16 at Monumental Stadium.
In the first leg, Vélez Sarsfield delivered a football blow to River Plate, which could have scored more than one goal and sealed the series, but ended up settling for a narrow 1-0 victory that keeps the series open for the rematch. The 'millonarios' are obligated to win by two goals to secure their spot in the next round.
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"The only positive thing is the result because it's a minimal advantage. But we must improve a lot because we can't play worse than this. At our home stadium, we will see a completely different match," admitted a self-critical Marcelo Gallardo, River's coach, after the loss last week.
WATCH - Live on ESPN: River - Vélez, direct from Monumental Stadium
Meanwhile, here is the lineup that River Plate is expected to propose tonight at Estadio Monumental de Núñez. Check out the players Marcelo Gallardo would field at the start of the match.
RIVER VS VÉLEZ FORMATION FOR COPA LIBERTADORES
Both River Plate and Vélez Sarsfield rested their key players for the rematch and lost their respective matches in the sixth round of the Liga Profesional, in which they both have had ups and downs and are far from the league leaders Gimnasia and Newel's.