After a six-week long break, Paraguayan outfit Olimpia return to action against Brazilians Internacional for the first leg of their Copa Libertadores round-of-16 clash on Thursday.
The encounter will take place at the Estadio Manuel Ferreira Stadium in Asunción, Paraguay.
The hosts will be aiming to end their losing streak against the visitors, having lost both of their Copa Libertadores group stage ties back in May.
Olimpia begin their quest for a fourth Copa Libertadores title as they return to action after six weeks away from football.
They last took to the pitch on 30 May, when they claimed a 2-1 victory away to River Plate de Asuncion in the Paraguayan top-flight.
El Decano enjoyed a decent run in the group stages of the Copa Libertadores. With nine points from six games, they finished second in Group B, one point behind Internacional.
Sergio Orteman’s side are currently on a three-game winning run across all competitions, scoring 12 goals and conceding four.
However, Olympia face the uphill task of taking on Thursday’s visitors, who they suffered successive losses against in the group stage.
Meanwhile, Internacional have been impressive at the continental tournament so far. They picked up three wins and one draw in the group stages to finish at the summit of Group B.
However, domestically, they have struggled for form in the Brasileiro Serie A and head into Thursday’s game on a five-game winless run.
Miguel Angel Ramirez’s men currently occupy 15th place in the league, four points above the relegation zone.
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Olimpia vs Internacional Head-To-Head.
This is the third-ever meeting between the two sides. The visitors have been superior, claiming wins in both encounters, including a thumping 6-1 home win on 6 May.
Olimpia Form Guide (all competitions): L-L-W-W-W
Internacional Form Guide (all competitions): D-L-D-L-D
Olimpia vs Internacional Team News
Olimpia
Olimpia have a clean bill of health heading into this game. However, they will be without right-back Sergio Otalvaro for both legs after he received his marching orders in their final group stage game against Deportivo Tachira.
Injured: None
Suspended: Sergio Otalvaro
Internacional
The visitors will be without the services of Paolo Guerrero (knee), Abel Hernandez (heel), Mauricio (ankle), Ze Gabriel (thigh) and Rodrigo Moledo (knee) due to injuries.
Injured: Paolo Guerrero, Abel Hernandez, Mauricio, Ze Gabriel, Rodrigo Moledo
Suspended: None
Olimpia vs Internacional Predicted XI
Olimpia Predicted XI (4-4-2): Alfredo Aguilar; Luis De la Cruz, Carlos Rolón, Jordán Santacruz, Wilson Ibarrola; Hugo Quintana, Rodrigo Rojas, Braian Ojeda, Marcelo Estigarribia; Derlis González, Isidro pitta
Internacional Predicted XI (4-1-4-1): Daniel, Renzo Saravia, Lucas Ribeiro, Pedro Henrique, Leo Borges, Rodrigo Dourado, Caio Vidal, Johnny Cardoso, Mauricio, Patrick, Yuri Alberto
Olimpia vs Internacional Prediction
Internacional have been dominant in their previous meetings with the hosts and will feel confident of claiming another vital first-leg win.
However, we predict the well-rested Olimpia side will cancel out the efforts of their Brazilian counterparts and force a share of the spoils.
Prediction: Olimpia 1-1 Internacional
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