A new Copa Sudamericana champion will be crowned on Saturday at Estadio General Pablo Rojas in Paraguay as Racing Club and Cruzeiro seek to lift the trophy for the first time.
The Argentines came back to win their second-leg semi-final fixture versus Corinthians 2-1, advancing 4-3 on aggregate, while Celeste shut out Lanus 1-0 in Buenos Aires to win that tie by a cumulative score of 2-1.
Match preview
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Despite going behind after just six minutes in a do-or-die encounter with Corinthians, Racing Club persevered, winning a third successive home game in this competition.
Saturday will be their first appearance in a continental final since going down in the 1989 Recopa Sudamericana versus Nacional from Uruguay, a match they lost 1-0 on aggregate.
Gustavo Costas has this team in ideal form heading into this game, winning five consecutive encounters across all competitions.
With a victory this weekend, El Primer Grande will triumph at a CONMEBOL tournament for the first time since the 1967 Copa Libertadores, when they defeated Nacional 2-1 after the first two meetings between the two ended in 0-0 draws.
No side from Argentina has captured the Copa Sudamericana crown since Defensa y Justicia defeated Lanus in the 2020 final 3-0.
La Academia have never lost to a Brazilian opponent as the home team in this competition, defeating Bragantino (3-0), Athletico Paranaense (4-1) and Corinthians (2-1) in Argentina earlier in the tournament.
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Cruzeiro overcame a partisan crowd in Argentina, as a first-half stoppage time goal against Lanus propelled them into the final of this tournament.
Fernando Diniz has never lost a CONMEBOL club final, guiding Fluminense to a Copa Libertadores victory a year ago and the Recopa Sudamericana title in 2024.
Cruzeiro enter this final having lost two of their previous three encounters across all competitions, with their previous four competitive fixtures being decided by a single goal.
They have only conceded once in six away matches at the Sudamericana this year, losing 1-0 at Boca Juniors in the round of 16, their only defeat in the competition as the visitors in 2024.
Since Athletico Paranaense lifted this trophy in 2021 (1-0 over Bragantino), Brasileiro Serie A sides have lost the last two Sudamericana finals, with Sao Paolo suffering a 2-0 defeat versus Independiente del Valle in 2022 and Fortaleza losing to LDU Quito on penalties a year ago (4-3).
Raposa have not captured a continental tournament since the 1997 Copa Libertadores when they defeated Peruvian club Sporting Cristal 1-0 on aggregate in the final.
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Team News
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Racing had the same starting 11 in leg one and two of their semi-final tie versus Corinthians, with Roger Martinez and Santiago Solari being the only newcomers to feature in place of Maximiliano Salas and the tournament's joint-leading goalscorer Adrian Martinez in the latter stages of that decisive fixture.
A brace courtesy of Juan Fernando Quintero enabled them to advance into the final after Yuri Alberto had given the visitors the lead in the early stages of leg two.
For this upcoming encounter, Cruzeiro are likely to be missing Rafa Silva, who is dealing with a thigh injury, while Gabriel Veron, Matheus Pereira and Kaio Jorge are eligible to play despite missing their domestic encounter this week through suspension.
Jorge scored their only two goals in the semi-final stage, including the winner in Argentina, while Cassio made four stops to collect his second clean sheet of the competition.
Racing Club possible starting lineup:
Arias; Martirena, Di Cesare, Garcia Basso, Rojas; Almendra, Sosa, Nardoni; Quintero, A. Martinez, Salas
Cruzeiro possible starting lineup:
Cassio; William, Marcelo, Villalba, Xavier; Romero, Walace; Veron, Pereira, Diaz; Jorge
We say: Racing Club 1-0 Cruzeiro
Racing Club have been in their share of close games of late, and we believe that experience and their strong form will be enough to get the better of Cruzeiro, who should put up a good fight.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.