Fortaleza can claim their first trophy on the international stage when they battle LDU Quito in the final of the Copa Sudamericana on Saturday from Estadio Domingo Burgueno in Uruguay.
In the previous stage of this tournament, the Ecuadorians took out Defensa y Justicia 3-0 on aggregate, while Leao do Pici eliminated Corinthians by a 3-1 aggregate score.
Match preview
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A club that has existed for over a century (105 years) will finally get an opportunity to capture an international trophy this weekend.
This is the closest Fortaleza have ever been to South American glory, while they have yet to lose in the knockout stage of this tournament in 2023.
Throughout the knockout stage, Juan Pablo Vojvoda's men have been well-organised and disciplined defensively, conceding a goal or fewer in their previous six Sudamericana affairs.
They have never faced a side from Ecuador in a competitive fixture, and this team have only suffered one defeat against an opponent outside of Brazil at the Sudamericana this year (1-0 versus Estudiantes de Merida).
Since booking their place in the final of this tournament, Fortaleza seem to have stumbled a little, overcoming a 2-0 deficit to defeat America Mineiro (3-2) before losing consecutive domestic contests to Vasco da Gama (1-0) and Bahia (2-0).
They have never lost a match at the Sudamericana this year when scoring first but have also never won when allowing the opening goal.
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After a couple of nerve-racking ties in the round of 16 and quarter-finals, Los Merengues gave themselves a nice cushion in their semi-final tie with Defensa, winning the opening leg 3-0 and holding them off the scoresheet in the return engagement.
Perhaps their shootout triumphs versus Cesar Vallejo and Sao Paulo served as a lesson to Quito not to leave things up to chance too often, as they have been solid since advancing beyond the last eight of the Sudamericana, losing just one of their last seven competitive fixtures.
Over that stretch, Luis Zubeldia's men have only conceded one goal, while they have allowed a goal or fewer in all but one Sudamericana affair this season.
Saturday will be the third time they compete in the final of this competition, lifting the trophy on their first try in 2009 versus Fluminense, 5-4 on aggregate, though they lost by a 4-0 cumulative score two years later against Universidad de Chile.
Quito have scored the opening goal in all but one of their Sudamericana fixtures this year, losing only once after 90 minutes when drawing first blood (3-2 versus Nublense).
La U have claimed at least one positive result against all eight Brazilian sides that they have previously met in this competition.
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Team News
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Vojvoda made one change to the Fortaleza starting 11 from the first to the second leg of their semi-final clash with Corinthians as Yago Pikachu entered the lineup for the decisive fixture instead of Marinho.
Pikachu wound up with the winning goal that sent his side past Corinthians in the second leg of that tie, with Tinga adding an insurance marker shortly after, while Joao Ricardo made three stops for the clean sheet.
Leao do Pici have only scored in one competitive fixture since booking their place in the final of this competition, with Juan Martin Lucero, Imanol Machuca and Bruno Pacheco each netting in a 3-2 victory over America Mineiro in the Brasileiro Serie A.
We saw the same starting 11 for Quito in both semi-final encounters against Defensa y Justicia, with two new faces coming off the substitutes bench in the return leg as Richard Mina and Alexander Alvarado replaced Renato Ibarra and Sebastian Gonzalez.
A brace from Paolo Guerrero and a late strike from Lucas Piovi in their opening leg semi-final victory helped propel them into the final as Alexander Dominguez posted consecutive clean sheets.
Dominguez had another clean sheet in their previous domestic encounter this week, as an early second-half strike by Jose Quintero gave them a 1-0 victory over Emelec.
Fortaleza possible starting lineup:
Ricardo; Tinga, Britez, Titi, Pacheco; Welison, Alexandre; Crispim, Pochettino, Guilherme; Lucero
LDU Quito possible starting lineup:
Dominguez; Quintero, Ade, Rodriguez, Quinonez; Martinez, Piovi; Ibarra, Zambrano, Julio; Guerrero
We say: Fortaleza 1-0 LDU Quito
Experience may favour the Ecuadorians heading into this fixture, but Fortaleza have faced some stiff challenges domestically and at the Sudamericana this year, and we believe that will enable them to find that extra gear and eventually break down that stingy Quito backline.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Joel Lefevre
