The 2024 CONMEBOL Libertadores group stage begins this week with a number of mouth-watering games. Brazilian sides have been dominating in this tournament lately, with the last five champions being from Brazil.
This year’s action begins Tuesday with one of the strongest candidates. Flamengo will visit Millonarios in Bogotá, in what could be a pivotal match in Group E, which also includes Bolívar (Bolivia) and Palestino (Chile). Tite’s team is in the midst of the Carioca Championship final, having reached the final alongside Nova Iguaçu. Last week, Mengão were hit with a bombshell as Gabriel Barbosa (Gabigol) received a two-year suspension for alleged fraud in a doping test.
READ MORE
++ James Rodríguez headlines São Paulo squad for the Libertadores
++ Despite the suspension, Gabigol is registered by Flamengo for the Libertadores
++ The record prizes that the Libertadores and the Sudamericana will deliver
Grêmio will also make their debut that day, returning to the premier continental tournament after finishing as runners-up in the last Brasileirão. Their first match is against The Strongest, in the high altitude of La Paz. Without Luis Suárez, the Porto Alegre outfit has found another veteran scorer in Diego Costa. Like Flamengo, they are in the midst of the Gaúcho Championship final, facing Juventude.
Wednesday will see Botafogo take the field when they host Junior (Colombia). The Rio de Janeiro club advanced to the group stage from the preliminary phase, knocking out Aurora and Bragantino. A few hours later, Palmeiras will show up in one of the most anticipated fixtures of the week, facing San Lorenzo in Argentina. With Independiente del Valle (Ecuador) and Liverpool (Uruguay) also in Group F, we’re talking about one of the toughest groups in the competition.
📌⚽ Dates and times for Matchday 1⃣! pic.twitter.com/JTeMGkmGWW
— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@TheLibertadores) March 20, 2024
Fluminense begin their title defense on Wednesday as well, visiting Peru to take on Alianza Lima. Though they’ve won the Recopa Sudamericana, Fernando Diniz’s men enter the tournament aiming to bounce back after being eliminated from the Carioca Championship by lifelong rivals Flamengo.
Atlético Mineiro, with newly-appointed coach Gabriel Milito, will travel to Venezuela for a clash against Caracas FC on Thursday. The team is also in the midst of the Mineiro Championship final against rivals Cruzeiro.
The last Brazilian team to take the field in this first round of the Libertadores will be São Paulo. Following their premature elimination from the Paulista Championship, they will travel to Córdoba to face Talleres (Argentina) on Thursday night.
