Sao Paulo hosts Sporting Cristal in round 6 of the Copa Libertadores group stage. The match will be played on Tuesday, May 25th at Estádio do Morumbi (Sao Paulo)
Sao Paulo plays in two tournaments – Campeonato Paulista and Copa Libertadores. The Tricolors managed to win three of the last five matches. Moreover, Sao Paulo became the winner of the Campeonato Paulista. In the two-legged confrontation, the team proved to be stronger than Palmeiras (0-0 and 2-0). In Copa Libertadores, nothing threatens the positions of the Tricolors one round before the end of the group stage. In the 5th round, Sao Paulo lost to Racing, but Sporting Cristal, which is ranked third, will not be able to bypass the Brazilian club. Separately, I will note that Sao Paulo did not concede a single goal in three of the last five matches. And both sides failed to score in four out of five meetings of Sao Paulo.
Sporting Cristal alternates between successes and failures. After a victory over Cusco in the Peruvian championship (2-1), the team lost to Racing in Copa Libertadores (0-2). But then the Peruvians managed to achieve two victories in a row. In the home arena, they beat Sport Huancayo (2-0) and dealt with Rensistas in the CL with the same score. That victory allowed Sporting Cristal to rise to third place in the standings. Interestingly, only one side scored in four of the last five matches with the participation of the Peruvian club. And the hosts were sure to score in four out of five games.
The first match of the teams in the current draw of the Copa Libertadores was their debut head-to-head confrontation. São Paulo hammered Sporting Cristal with a 0-3 score. Now Sao Paulo will play without center-back Walce. Right winger Christopher Oliveiras and center forward Percy Liza will not help Sporting Cristal. Both sides have failed to score in four of the last five matches —São Paulo and Sporting Cristal have identical figures in terms of this outcome. Beyond that, the Peruvians were unable to score against the Brazilian club at home. And the Tricolors are extremely unyielding at home.
Prediction for the match: Both teams to score — no
