04/09/2021 2:55 PM
Clarín.com
sports
Updated 04/09/2021 2:55 PM
Brazil lives days in which the number of deaths from coronavirus exceed those of births.
In Argentina, the restriction measures were sharpened due to the impressive increase in cases.
Uruguay is currently the country with the most infections per million inhabitants and so far in April more people have died than in all of 2020. In Paraguay, where the draw was held, they warn of a critical situation and project the collapse within a couple of weeks.
Right when the show starts.
Trips, bubbles, protocols, tests, outbreaks, sheets ready to patch up contingencies.
A giant asterisk must accompany each step of those that are already being taken in the South American football competitions and those that will continue, to all pomps, with the maps of the Copa Libertadores and Sudamericana defined.
In this context, the groups were defined.
And with the cards on the table, the Boca area is more difficult than River's, although both appear as favorites to advance to the round of 16.
This is how the Libertadores groups were defined.
Miguel Russo's team, in its first steps towards the dream of the
Seventh
, has two long trips, to Ecuador and to the height of Bolivia, but its toughest challenge will be against the rival that still needs to be defined: Santos or San Lorenzo.
What will Boca prefer: the tough cross against a compatriot who dominates him in his hand-to-hand history or does he prefer to go to Brazil and cross his recent cup-bearer again?
River, for its part, has already secured a clash in Brazil but against the team that is presumed to be the weakest of all the representatives of the neighboring country, Fluminense.
And two long trips that usually annoy the leaders: to the assured visit to Colombia to play against Independiente Santa Fe, another trip to the same destination or to the height of Bolivia could be added, according to how the key is defined between Junior from Barranquilla and Bolívar.
For Racing, Hernán Crespo's San Pablo will be their toughest rival in a Group E completed by Sporting Cristal and Rentistas from Uruguay.
For not having been in the first ciborium, the Academy came out well off the bolilleros and can aspire to classify without surprises.
Defense and Justice and Velez will have a very high bar to go to the round of 16.
Those of Florencio Varela, current champions of the South American, will collide with the monarch of the Libertadores, Palmeiras, the same rival against whom the Recopa Sudamericana is contesting.
As if that were not enough, that Group A adds difficulty with Universitario de Perú and waits for the winner of Gremio-Independiente del Valle.
For those from Liniers, the challenge in Group G will be against two other American champions such as Flamengo and Liga de Quito, as well as Unión La Calera, the Chilean team managed by Christian Bragarnik and who is on the rise.
Meanwhile, Argentinos Juniors will seek to make a foothold against historic clubs on the continent that want to dream big again.
The path of Gabriel Milito's team in Group F against Nacional de Montevideo, Universidad Católica and the winner of the Libertad-Atlético Nacional series will be very brave.
With the cup map defined, a crossroads for Argentine teams begins to lurk: balancing energies between a tournament that is long like the Libertadores but has a dizzying first stage until mid-year, while defining the Cup Super League.
There is a decisive point: the group stage of the Cup will be played at stick, in six weeks without stopping, from April 21 to May 26.
Then the Copa América will arrive and after it the stage of direct elimination of the Libertadores will begin, with the crosses determined in the draw between those who finish first and second in each zone.
Boca and River, the two Argentine seeds, had in the anteroom of the draw two cuckoos that threatened in the second ciborium to complicate the road: Inter de Porto Alegre and Atlético Mineiro.
Chance allowed them to avoid them.
The second threat appeared with the crosses that remain to be solved from the third phase of the contest, which is being played and which will complete the organization chart.
There Miguel Russo's team got the worst of it.
Because the key that Santos and San Lorenzo define came out of the fourth ballroom.
The winner (the first leg was for Brazilians Ariel Holan 3-1) will enter the xeneize group and possibly become the toughest rival.
While River (waiting for the winner of Bolívar-Junior: in the first leg the Bolivians won at home 2-1) knows that the trip will be rough but the rival is not one of the worst that could touch him.
This is how the groups of the Copa Libertadores remained
Group A:
Palmeiras, Defensa y Justicia, Universitario (PER), winner of the Independiente del Valle-Gremio series.
Group B:
Olimpia, Inter (BRA), Deportivo Táchira, Always Ready.
Group C:
Boca, Barcelona (ECU), The Strongest, winner of the San Lorenzo-Santos series.
Group D:
River, Independiente Santa Fe, Fluminense, winner of the Bolívar-Junior series.
Group E:
San Pablo, Racing, Sporting Cristal, Rentistas.
Group F:
Nacional (URU), Universidad Católica, Argentinos Jrs, winner of the Libertad-Atlético Nacional series.
Group G:
Flamengo, Liga de Quito, Vélez, Unión La Calera
Group H:
Cerro Porteño, Atlético Mineiro, América de Cali, Deportivo La Guaira.
The road to the Copa Sudamericana
For this edition, the Sudamericana changed its format of individual matches and opted for a group phase and only the first one will go to the round of 16, where they will meet against the third parties from each zone of the Libertadores.
Independiente, two-time champion of the competition (2010 and 2017), will clash in group B with Bahía (Brazil), Guabirá (Bolivia) and Uruguay 1 (City Torque or Fénix).
Lanús, current runner-up and who made the Olympic return in 2013, will meet in group H with La Equidad (Colombia), Aragua (Venezuela) and Independiente del Valle (Ecuador) / Gremio (Brazil).
Rosario Central, who returned after three years, will share the A with Huachipato (Chile), 12 de Octubre (Paraguay) and the loser of San Lorenzo and Santos.
The group stage will be played from April 21 to May 26;
Round of 16 (July 14 and 21);
quarterfinals (August 11 and 18), semi-finals (September 22 and 29) and single final (in November with no date or venue to be designated).
This is how the groups remained
Group A:
Rosario Central (ARG), Huachipato (CHI), 12 de Octubre (PAR) and San Lorenzo (ARG) or Santos (BRA).
Group B:
Independiente (ARG), Bahía (BRA), Guabirá (BOL) and Torque o Fénix (URU).
Group C:
Jorge Wilstermann (BOL), Arsenal (ARG), Ceará (BRA) and Bolívar, from Bolivia, or Junior from Barranquilla, from Colombia Group D: Atlético Paranaense (BRA), Melgar (PER), Aucas (ECU) and Metropolitans (VEN) Group E: Corinthians (BRA), Sport Huancayo (PER), River Plate (PAR) and Cerro Largo or Peñarol (URU).
Group F:
Newell's (ARG), Palestino (CHI), Atlético Goianiense (BRA) and Libertad de Paraguay or Atlético Nacional de Medellín.
Group G:
Emelec (ECU), Deportes Tolima (COL), Talleres (ARG) and Bragantino (BRA).
Group H:
Lanús (ARG), La Equidad (COL), Aragua (VEN) and Gremio or Independiente del Valle de Ecuador.
