Copa Libertadores, Copa Sudamericana draw Argentina’s international rivals

River Plate will face Talleres de Córdoba while Boca Juniors has to wait for postponed games to be played

Argentine football clubs now know who they’re facing next in the Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana. Conmebol, the South American Football Confederation, held the draw for the competition’s knockout stages, although much is undecided due to the Rio Grande do Sul floods.

Three Argentine sides surpassed the group stage in the Copa Libertadores, the continent’s premier international club competition, River Plate, Talleres de Córdoba, and San Lorenzo. But only two can continue as it’s an all-Argentine duel between the Millonario and La T for a place in the quarter-finals. 

The first leg will be played at the Mario Alberto Kempes stadium in Córdoba while the rematch will be played at the River Plate’s Monumental stadium. The winner will face Chile’s Colo Colo or Colombia’s Junior de Barranquila.

The Cuervo, for its part, will face Brazilian giants Atlético Mineiro, one of the favorites for the title. The Belo Horizonte team swept up Group G and is one of the best teams in the cup so far. The series will start in San Lorenzo’s Nuevo Gasómetro stadium and will be defined in Belo Horizonte.

Their future rival has yet to be determined, as group C games were postponed due to the widespread floods in southern Brazil, which means The Strongest, Huachipato, or Gremio could be facing Fluminense.

The series, with dates still to be determined, will start on August 13, 14, or 15, with the return leg played on August 20, 21, or 22.

Boca awaits a rival

Things aren’t much different in the Copa Sudamericana, where Boca Juniors had to settle for second place in its group and now has one extra step on its road to the title. Second-placed teams in the Sudamericana group stage have to play one of the Libertadores’ group stage third-placed teams.

Argentine teams Racing, Belgrano de Córdoba, and Lanús all finished first and await the winners of playoffs A, H, and F respectively in the round of 16

However, who those are is up for grabs. Much like Gremio in the Libertadores, the floods forced Porto Alegre derby rivals Inter to postpone games, which could see the Sudamericana’s group C go different ways.

As things stand, Boca could face Liga de Quito, Independiente del Valle, Libertad, Estudiantes, or Gremio, and then go on to clash with either Fortaleza or Lanús.

Rosario Central, for its part, could go up against Delfín, Inter, Gremio, Racing de Montevideo, or Always Ready for the play-off, and then face Racing or Fortaleza in the round of 16.

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