Heading into the final group stage encounter at the Copa Sudamericana, Sao Paulo and Tigre are already assured of a spot in the round of 16 when they square off at Estadio Cicero Pompeu de Toledo on Tuesday.
A 2-1 win over Academia Puerto Cabello on matchday five secured the Argentines' place in the knockout round, while Tricolor Paulista are undefeated in the group stage, coming away with an emphatic 5-0 triumph versus Deportes Tolima the last time out.
Match preview
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After leading Flamengo to a pair of trophies in 2022, including the Copa Libertadores, Dorival Junior has Sao Paulo looking like one of the teams to beat at the Sudamericana this year.
Their backline at this competition has been virtually impenetrable, with this team being the only one in the group stage that have yet to concede.
Soberano have not given up more than two shots on target since their opening victory at Tigre and have only lost one of their last 10 home fixtures in all competitions
It has been nearly four years since they suffered their only home defeat over 90 minutes in this competition versus an Argentine opponent, falling 1-0 to Colon in August 2018.
Since the start of April, Sao Paulo have only suffered one competitive defeat at home, posting five clean sheets in those 10 encounters.
They have dropped two of their last three domestic encounters, falling 1-0 at Cruzeiro on Saturday, the second successive road defeat for them in the Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A.
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Making their first appearance at this tournament since 2015, Tigre will be competing in the last 16 for the first time in 10 years, and they have an outside shot at claiming first place in the group, though unlikely given they need a victory by eight or more goals.
They began this competition poorly, losing 2-0 to Sao Paulo, but since a 2-1 come-from-behind triumph over Tolima on matchday two, the Buenos Aires-based team have looked a lot more compact defensively, conceding just once in their previous three Sudamericana affairs.
Since a 3-0 defeat over Puerto Cabello on matchday three, they have reeled off three successive road losses in the Argentine Primera Division, failing to score in those last two encounters.
Juan Sara replaced Diego Martinez as manager earlier this month, and the 46-year-old won his first match at the helm 2-1 against Velez Sarsfield on Thursday.
Tigre have not scored an away goal in the opening half since the middle of May, when they suffered a 2-1 domestic defeat to Independiente.
The Argentines have lost five of their seven contests against Brazilian opponents, with that only victory coming at home versus Palmeiras at the 2013 Copa Libertadores (1-0), while they have never scored a goal against Sao Paulo, with their best result coming at the 2012 Sudamericana when the two sides played to a 0-0 draw.
Team News
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Sao Paulo could be without Joao Moreira (knee), Igor Vinicius (groin), Talles Costa (meniscus), Welington (ankle), Andre Anderson (groin), Jandrei (hand) and Michel Araujo through injury, while Gabriel Neves is eligible to play, having missed their weekend fixture at Cruzeiro through suspension.
A brace from Caio Paulista, along with one from David, Luciano and Argentine striker Jonathan Calleri, were more than enough to give them another victory in their previous match in this competition, as Rafael did not have to make a single stop for his fifth shutout at the Sudamericana this year.
Erison had a pair of second-half strikes in their opening match versus Tigre, while an own-goal by Rafinha in the third minute sent them to defeat domestically this past weekend.
Tigre are expected to be without Sebastian Prieto on Tuesday as he is still recovering from a strain injury, while Alexis Castro remains sidelined due to a sprained knee.
Goals from Blas Armoa and Abel Luciatti enabled them to edge past Cabello on matchday five, despite conceding a 96th-minute goal from Danny Perez.
Mateo Retegui leads them with 10 goals on the current domestic campaign, scoring just once in the opening phase of this competition, while Facundo Colidio and Tomas Badaloni each netted in that come-from-behind victory versus Tolima, which is ultimately the reason they clinched a spot in the last 16.
Sao Paulo possible starting lineup:
Rafael; Nathan, Arboleda, Beraldo, Paulista; Neves, Luan; Juan, David, Alisson; Calleri
Tigre possible starting lineup:
Marinelli; Garay, Cabrera, Luciatti, Prieto; Molinas, Prediger, Montoya; Colidio; Armoa, Badaloni
We say: Sao Paulo 1-0 Tigre
With first place basically assured, Sao Paulo will want to get through this match without any serious injuries, so we do not expect this to be a very intense game.
However, the overall depth of Tricolor Paulista along with a solid defensive shape should be enough for them to claim a narrow victory against an opponent in Tigre who are struggling away from home.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joel Lefevre
