A new edition of the Copa Libertadores was drawn at Conmebol headquarters in Luque (Paraguay).
With no major surprises (some places that are playing in the preliminary elimination round have yet to be defined), everything seems to be heading, according to soccer logic, to a meeting between Brazilians and Argentineans in the final stages, either as it happened last year or alternating.
What is really striking is that two big Brazilian teams such as Gremio and Santos (finalist against Palmeiras in the last edition) are in the playoff zone and therefore there is a latent possibility that both will be left out of the cup.
The group stage will take place from April 21 to May 26 with 32 teams divided into 8 zones of 4. The first two will advance to the round of 16 and the third will reach the same stage of the Sudamericana.
The final.
The draw for the final phase of the 2021 Libertadores will be held on June 2 at Conmebol headquarters.
The one-sided final is scheduled for Saturday, November 20.
The host country for the final will be Argentina. To date, there are seven Argentine stadiums that have applied to host the final match, located in the Federal Capital (3), in the Province of Buenos Aires (2) and the remaining ones in the provinces of Córdoba (1) and Santiago del Estero (1).
The stadiums are: the Monumental (River Plate), La Bombonera (Boca Juniors), the Cilindro de Avellaneda (Racing Club), the Libertadores de América (Club Atlético Independiente), the Nuevo Gasómetro (San Lorenzo de Almagro), the Estadio Único Madre de Ciudades (Santiago del Estero) and the Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes (Córdoba).
The groups.
Let us now analyze each group in particular.
In Group A there is the current champion Palmeiras (Brazil) and next to them are Defensa y Justicia (Argentina), one of the revelations of the last years, current champion of the Copa Sudamericana, Universitario (Peru) and Independiente del Valle (Ecuador) or Gremio (Brazil). It is a difficult group in which there is still one vacancy to be confirmed, which will arise from the winner between these last two. It is considered one of the strongest groups, although its members have the advantage of not playing in La Paz (Bolivia).
Group B is one of the most evenly matched groups. Olimpia (Paraguay), Inter (Brazil), Deportivo Táchira (Venezuela) and Always Ready (Bolivia) and the preferences go to the first two although Always Ready, the revelation, is not to be discarded especially due to the influence of the Bolivian altitude.
In group C, everything seems to indicate that Boca Juniors (Argentina) together with the winner of the match between San Lorenzo (Argentina) and Santos (Brazil), runner-up of the last Libertadores, would be the main candidates. Completing the group are Barcelona (Ecuador), The Strongest (Bolivia) and San Lorenzo or Santos (Brazil).
Group D is formed by River Plate (Argentina), Independiente Santa Fe (Colombia), Fluminense (Brazil) and Bolivar (Bolivia) or Junior (Colombia). Although the Argentinians and Brazilians are candidates to advance to the next round, they should not be underestimated in the high altitude when they have to go to Bolivia to play.
Group E is very even. San Pablo (Brazil), Racing Club (Argentina), Sporting Cristal (Peru) and Rentista (Uruguay) are all in a similar position to advance to the next round.
In Group F, Nacional (Uruguay), Universidad Católica (Chile), Argentinos Juniors (Argentina) and Libertad (Paraguay) or Atlético Nacional (Colombia) will be looking to advance to the next round. Argentinos Juniors is the revelation, the remaining teams have a vast experience in Libertadores participations. It is also a very homogeneous group where it is impossible to look for a candidate.
In Group G, the 2019 Libertadores champion Flamengo (Brazil) will face Liga de Quito (Ecuador), Velez Sarfield (Argentina) and Union La Calera (Chile).
Finally, in Group H, Cerro Porteño (Paraguay), Atlético Mineiro (Brazil), América de Cali (Colombia) and Deportivo La Guaira (Venezuela) will face each other.
Source images: Conmebol Libertadores.