Independiente Medellin can book a place in the semi-finals of the Copa Sudamericana for the first time in club history with a victory at home to Lanus on Wednesday at Estadio Atanasio Giradot in the second leg of that tie.
Things are all square between these two, heading to Medellin for this decisive encounter following a 0-0 draw in Lanus last Wednesday.
Match preview
Another strong defensive showing in the opening match of this tie has Independiente Medellin in position to make the semi-finals of an international club tournament for the first time since the 2003 Copa Libertadores.
Alejandro Restrepo's men are the last Colombian side remaining in the competition, and with a victory on Wednesday, they would become the first team from Colombia to make it to the penultimate hurdle of this tournament since Junior and Santa Fe in 2018.
El Decano have a 100% record at home in the Copa Sudamericana this year, outscoring their opponents in Medellin by a combined margin of 14-3.
The Colombians have only conceded one goal in their last five competitive fixtures at Estadio Atanasio Giradot, and that came on Sunday in a 1-0 domestic defeat versus Deportes Tolima, their first at home since March 31 (4-1 loss to America de Cali).
They have not been behind for a single second at home in this competition and have never lost a Sudamericana fixture this year when netting in the second half.
El Rojo Paisa are unbeaten against Argentine opponents at the Sudamericana this year, defeating Defensa y Justicia 2-1 in the group phase, their first-ever triumph versus a club from Argentina in the competition.
For the second time at the Sudamericana this year, Lanus failed to find the mark last Wednesday despite firing eight efforts on target.
Scoring goals has been an ongoing issue for them of late, with the Argentines being held off the scoresheet in three of their previous four matches across all competitions.
Ricardo Zielinski's men are undefeated away from home in the Sudamericana this season, winning their last three matches as the visitors in this competition.
Coming into this encounter, Lanus are winless in five consecutive competitive fixtures, losing 3-0 to Huracan in the Argentine Primera Division on Sunday.
This is their third time competing in the last eight of this tournament, and Lanus have made it beyond this stage in their previous two appearances, eliminating Independiente from Argentina in this phase in 2020 and taking out River Plate in the 2013 quarter-finals.
Granate have never lost a Copa Sudamericana fixture versus a side from Colombia in five previous meetings, including two victories over La Equidad and two triumphs versus Junior.
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Team News
In the opening leg of this tie, Joaquin Varela was sidelined for Medellin after suffering a ligament injury earlier this month, with Homer Martinez, Daniel Londono, Francisco Chaverra and Baldomero Perlaza being the only newcomers in the starting 11 who did not begin their second-leg victory over Palestino (4-0).
Eder Chaux rescued his side by making eight stops against Lanus last week to collect his third clean sheet of the tournament this year.
When these sides previously met, the Argentines were without Dylan Aquino, who is recovering from a torn muscle, Abel Luciatti is dealing with a hamstring strain and Felipe Pena Biafore was sidelined because of an adductor injury.
Nahuel Losada only faced three shots on target in the first leg of this tie and stopped them all for his first clean sheet of the tournament since taking the place of Alan Aguerre, who started each of their group fixtures.
Independiente Medellin possible starting lineup:
Chaux; Chaverra, Martinez, Torijano, Londono, Fory; Perlaza, Alvarado, Mosquera; Garcia, Sandoval
Lanus possible starting lineup:
Losada; Morgantini, Izquierdoz, Luciatti, Soler; Loaiza, Boggio; Acosta, Moreno, Carrera; Bou
We say: Independiente Medellin 1-1 Lanus (Independiente Medellin advance on penalties)
Momentum should favour the Colombians in this one, as they have been excellent at home in this tournament, and we believe they will find a way to get over the line in front of their supporters this week.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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