Flamengo v Aucas

Flamengo vs Aucas Preview

Flamengo will be determined to produce a professional and workmanlike display on Wednesday night when they play host to Aucas in Group A as the hosts look to make sure of their place in the knockout round of this season's Copa Libertadores.

Flamengo occupy second place in Group A where they trail the group leaders, Racing Club, by a two-point margin but more importantly, Flamengo possess a three-point cushion over third placed side Nublense heading into this final matchday of the group phase.

Wednesday's hosts have lost just once in their last 12 matches in all competitions which came in the form of a heavy 4-0 defeat away from home at Bragantino in the Brazilian Serie A but having lost just once so far in their five group games of this Copa Libertadores (a 2-1 loss at Aucas), Flamengo will be keen to avenge that loss here at the Maracana.

Eight wins within these last 12 matches should give Flamengo plenty of confidence anyway, but results at home in the Copa Libertadores have been exceptional; the hosts have won their last 12 home games on the trot in this competition while eight of these 12 wins have also seen Over 2.5 goals scored too.

Aucas may well be fearing the worst as they make their way to the Maracana having produced a shock 2-1 home win over Flamengo earlier in the group stage of this competition and having recorded just one win from their previous seven matches overall, the visitors look to have their work cut out here.

This disappointing sequence of results include four defeats, one of which was a 2-1 loss at home to Argentinos Jrs in the Copa Libertadores, while results in their first ever appearance in this competition have taken a serious turn for the worse.

Aucas had earlier opened their account with a shock 2-1 home win against Flamengo to give them a great start but reality has soon kicked in as the Ecuador outfit have lost three of their subsequent four matches, suffering home and away defeats to Racing Club along with a loss away from home at Nublense.

Interestingly, four of Aucas' five group games to date have produced Over 2.5 goals and further goals could feature in this upcoming clash at the iconic Maracana.

Flamengo v Aucas Verdict

Flamengo have a couple of reasons for wanting to secure all three points here as they were dealt defeat in their last meeting against their visitors, while the hosts also know that all three points at home on Wednesday night would send them into the knockout phase of the competition.

Therefore, our main bet will be Over 2.5 goals @ 1.52

Other side bets worth considering:

Flamengo win & Over 3.5 goals @ 2.37

Correct score: Flamengo 3-1 @ 12.00