Comments and predictions for Penarol vs Velez Sarsfield: Tough battle from the first minute

Latest Penarol vs Velez Sarsfield team information

Penarol coach Diego Aguirre will be without a number of players on Thursday. Nahuel Herrera is likely to miss out due to a muscle strain he picked up last week.

Felipe Avenatti (ankle injury), Tomas Olase, Eduardo Darias and young talent German Barbas (all with ligament problems) will also be absent, while Camilo Mayada was dropped from the squad before leaving the club.

However, the good news for the home side is that young centre-back Juan Rodriguez could be back on the bench, and star attacker Leo Fernandez is fully fit. The player – who scored in the first leg in April – currently leads the Libertadores assist charts with four assists, and is one of four players to have provided at least 10 in the competition this decade.

On the away team side, Velez still has high hopes for Maher Carrizo - who has scored four goals this season, just one goal behind the leading scorer.

Their injury list is also quite long: sought-after defender Valentin Gomez has an ankle injury, while Parma target Christian Ordonez has a muscle problem.

Braian Romero is still recovering from a hamstring injury, and both Emanuel Mammana and Michael Santos will also miss out. However, right-back Agustin Lagos has been confirmed fit to play if needed.

Penarol vs Velez Sarsfield latest expected lineup

Penarol:
De Amores; Milans, Coelho, Silva, Olivera; Perez, Sosa; Baez, Fernandez, Umpierrez; Silvera

Velez Sarsfield:
Marchiori; Gordon, Fernandez, Quiros, E. Gomez; Machuca, Baeza, Bouzat; Pellegrini, Carrizo, Pizzini

Latest football commentary Penarol vs Velez Sarsfield

Coming from two goals down to maintain their unbeaten home run in the Copa Libertadores, Penarol turned things around in their penultimate group game, beating Paraguay's Olimpia 3-2 and progressing.

After a frustrating first half, goals from Leo Fernandez, Maximiliano Olivera and Eric Remedi saw the Uruguayan side – five-time winners of the tournament – ​​and Velez Sarsfield progress to the next round.

Penarol are currently second in Group H – level on points with Velez (both 10) but two points behind on goal difference. Their domestic form has also been impressive: after a strong end to the Apertura, they opened the intermediary round with a win over Plaza Colonia last weekend.

In fact, Diego Aguirre's side are unbeaten in 11 consecutive matches in all competitions since losing to Velez in Argentina nearly two months ago.

Not only that, Aurinegros are also maintaining a 21-match unbeaten streak at home in the Libertadores, including 18 wins since May 2017.

The first leg between the two sides saw a dramatic encounter as Velez scored two late goals to win 2-1 at El Fortin: Maher Carrizo equalised in the 80th minute before Alvaro Montoro sealed the win deep into stoppage time.

As a result, the Argentine side have won four of their five meetings with Penarol in South America's top flight, and will now go head-to-head for the top spot on Thursday.

On their way to the round of 16, Velez averaged more than two goals per game, and they scored three in their last match.

A big home win against weak Bolivian side San Antonio Bulo Bulo helped the Buenos Aires representative join the group that advanced to the next round with big names like River Plate and Palmeiras.

However, in the first stage of the Argentine National Championship, Guillermo Barros Schelotto's team ranked only 13th with only four wins after 16 matches.

The reigning champions will face Estudiantes in the International Super Cup shortly after their clash with Penarol, before entering the second phase of the season, so they will be aiming to build momentum by finishing top of Group H.

Latest Penarol vs Velez Sarsfield score prediction

Based on the above football comments, we and the world's leading football sites have given the results of the match.Penarol vs Velez Sarsfieldas follows:

• Sportsmole:Penarol 1-1 Velez Sarsfield

• WhoScore:Penarol 2-3 Velez Sarsfield
• Our newspaper predicts:Penarol 1-1 Velez Sarsfield

When and where to watch Penarol vs Velez Sarsfield live?

To watch the live match Penarol vs Velez Sarsfield in the Copa Libertadores tournament taking place at 5:00 am on May 30, viewers can watch it on online sports channels. Wish you have fun watching football.