Platense and Banfield bring round nine of the Argentine Primera Division to an end when they lock horns at the Estadio Ciudad de Vicente Lopez on Monday night.
Both sides head into the game fresh off the back of contrasting results, with the hosts cruising to victory over Defensa y Justicia while Gustavo Munua's men suffered a heavy defeat against Boca Juniors.
Match preview
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Platense picked up a second consecutive away win for the first time this season as they stormed to a 3-1 victory over Defensa Justicia at the Norberto Tomaghello Stadium last Monday.
A brace from Mateo Pellegrino and Guido Mainero's 70th-minute strike put the visitors in a commanding three-goal lead before substitute Abiel Osorio pulled one back for Defensa in the 77th minute.
Patense now return home, where they have lost their last two matches, including a penalty-shootout defeat at the hands of Huracan in their Copa Argentina round-of-32 clash on June 8.
Sergio Gomez's men will be backing themselves to pick up where they left off on Monday as they go up against an opposing side who have lost four of their last five encounters since April 2021.
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On the other hand, Banfield's early-season struggle continued in midweek as they suffered a 3-0 thrashing against Boca Juniors when the sides met at La Bombonera Stadium.
Veteran striker Edinson Cavani finished off a brilliant team goal midway through the first half to set Boca Juniors on their way before Miguel Merentiel and Jabes Saralegui scored in the second half to cap off a dominant display.
Munua's side have now failed to taste victory in four consecutive games, losing twice and claiming two draws, and have managed just one win in their eight matches to start the new league campaign.
El Taladro's stuttering start to the campaign has been owing to their struggles away from home, where they have lost each of their four matches this season while conceding nine goals and scoring just once.
Off the back of a 21st-placed finish in the 2023 campaign, Banfield have picked up just six points from their opening eight games to sit 25th in the standings, five points off Platense in 15th place.
Team News
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Platense will take to the pitch without several players down the spine of the team as Leonel Picco (muscle), Gabriel Hachen (muscle) and Ignacio Saborido (foot) are all recuperating from injuries.
Ivan Gomez has been ruled out since coming off with a hamstring injury in June's game against Talleres while 19-year-old forward Juan Pablo Goicochea is set to sit out his fourth consecutive game through a muscle problem.
Meanwhile, Banfield remain without the Argentine duo of Alexis Maldonado and midfielder Alejandro Cabrera, who continue their long road to full fitness having both sustained ACL injuries.
They are joined on El Taladro's injury table by 22-year-old forward Juan Bisanz, who is yet to feature this year after sustaining a severe injury against Godoy Cruz in December.
Twenty-year-old Lucas Palavecino has been out of action since suffering a cruciate ligament tear against Talleres back in March and the Argentine midfielder will also play no part in Monday's game.
Platense possible starting lineup:
Cozzani; Schelotto, Vazquez, Suso, Quiroga; Mainero, Juarez, Villalba, Zapiola; Pellegrino, Lotti
Banfield possible starting lineup:
Sanguinetti; Enrique, Maciel, Aranda, Insua; Nunez, Rodriguez, Galvan; Alvarez, Roldan, Rodriguez
We say: Platense 2-0 Banfield
Buoyed by their victory over Defensa, Platense will head into Monday's clash with confidence as they look to return to winning ways on home turf. Banfield's form on the road is nothing to write home about and we see them struggling at the Estadio Ciudad de Vicente Lopez once again.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Joshua Ojele
