Copa Libertadores Futures (Round of 16)
The Copa Libertadores group stage has come to an end now leaving us with the final 16 teams on the road to the finals. There are some very strong teams left in the tournament, including some of the biggest giants from Brasil and Argentina, and it is time to see which of these teams has the best chance of making it to the finals and lifting the trophy this year. To Win Outright Flamengo +350: Flamengo is coming in as the team with the best chance to win the tournament according to the books and for very good reason as this is not only one of the best teams in Brasil with their talent and depth, but they are also the defending Copa Libertadores champions from last year. Flamengo got off to a slower start this season as they usually do but now they find themselves in 2nd place of the Brasileirao and have been heating up recently as they are on a big run. This is a very good team once they get hot and they are very tough to stop once they are in a groove like this. They have the talent and the depth to make a deep run in this tournament as they are the defending champions and they usually get very hot late in the season which will give them lots of momentum going deep into this competition. Their defense has been sloppy early in the season but they will tighten up as the season goes on and they still have a very strong attack that can score goals both at home and away. Flamengo has the talent to make a deep run here and repeat as champions of the Copa Libertadores. Palmeiras +400: Palmeiras is coming in as the next team with the best chance to win this tournament according to the books. Palmeiras did not make it to the finals of this tournament last year but they have won 2 of the last 3 Copa Libertadores Titles as they won it B2B the 2 years prior to last season and they are also the defending Brasileirao champions from last season as well. Just like Flamengo, Palmeiras is a Brasilian giant that is one of the best teams in the country as they have a lot of talent and depth on their squad. They have not gotten out to a great start in the league this season as they are currently in 5th place but they were rolling in the Copa Libertadores group stage, winning 5 straight after losing their 1st match at elevation. Palmeiras does have a tougher matchup in this round with Atletico Mineiro and that could be a big obstacle in their way to the next round, but Atletico Mineiro has fallen out of form recently and Palmeiras has also had their number over the last few years when they face each other. Palmeiras has a very good team and they do have both the talent and the depth to make a deep run in this tournament, but they have not been at their best in their league matches this season and their early performance in the Brasileirao this year could have a lasting effect on Copa Libertadores if they make it to deeper rounds against much better opponents. Some of the stronger teams in this competition also matchup very well against Palmeiras this year so it would not be shocking to see an early exit for them before the finals. River Plate +600: River Plate is coming in as the next team with the best chance to win this tournament according to the books and they are also the biggest favorite to win for teams from Argentina. River Plate is a giant in Argentina and they have definitely been flexing their muscles this season as they have returned to glory in the Argentina Liga Profesional de Futbol, currently sitting at the top of the table with a big lead over 2nd place and only 3 league matches left. River Plate has also been rolling over teams in their matches recently which will give them a lot of momentum coming into this round, especially if they are coming off of a title win in their league. They are the best team in Argentina right now with the most talent and depth in their squad and they also have a scheduling advantage over some of the other Brasilian teams in this tournament. They play their last league match on July 30 which means they have nothing else to focus on but winning this competition when the Round of 16 starts in August. River Plate also struggled a lot last season in both competitions so now that they are back on top of Argentina coming into this Round of 16, expect nothing but the best level of play from this River Plate and they will certainly be a big threat to go deep into this tournament and win it. Fluminense +800: Fluminense is coming in as the next team with the best chance to win this tournament according to the books but this Fluminense side has definitely fallen out of form in their recent matches. Fluminense was one of the hottest teams in Brasil coming into the league season and this Copa Libertadores competition and they started off very strong in both tournaments but have fallen off in both since then. They did not finish the group stage off on a strong note and they have even been struggling to win matches and score goals in their league matches right now. Fluminense will have to start playing much better and get on another roll like they were on at the beginning of the season before they can even be considered a deep threat in this tournament, but even if they do there are still a lot of better teams that has been playing very well and eventually they will run into another club that will knock them out. Fluminense looked like a promising choice at the beginning of the season but they have regressed back into what they are and will not be able to put together a deep run in this tournament. Boca Juniors +1200: Boca Juniors is coming in as the next team with the best chance to win this tournament according to the books and they are also a giant in Argentina with a very good squad, but they have not been performing well in their own league as they currently sit around the middle of the table and they will struggle against some of the better teams in this competition as well. The few things they do have going for them is that they do have a very good defense that does not allow many goals and they have a very strong home advantage with a much stronger attack there. The problem is that they struggle to score goals away from home and if they do not make good use of their home leg in every round, they will be at risk of exiting the tournament to a better team that will keep them from scoring. Defense is very important when making a deep run in a competition like this but there are also plenty of talented teams with very strong attacks and if Boca Juniors is not able to score goals on those good defenses, then they are not going to be able to make a deep run here with their away performance this year. Boca Juniors has no chance of going deep into this tournament as they need to focus on winning matches in their own league before focusing on a competition like this with the best of the best. Racing Club +1200: Racing Club is coming in as the next team with the best chance to win this tournament according to the books but they are another Argentina giant that has failed to perform well in their own league this season. Racing Club has been a middle of the table team all season and they have also struggled in their away matches which will be a problem in this competition. They do have a very good team that plays well at home, but even in some of their recent home matches they have played very lazy and lethargic matches, dropping points against teams they should be beating, and there are a lot of much stronger teams in this competition for them to get through on their way to the finals. Just like Boca Juniors, Racing Club has had poor performances away from home all season and they have struggled to score in those matches as well. There is a chance Racing Club is not even in any South American competitions next year with their performance in the league this season and they are not going to be a threat to make a deep run in this tournament either. RecommendationsThere are some very good teams left in this competition and with all of the South American giants still left, it will likely be a club from Brasil or Argentina who wins. This competition has been strongly dominated by clubs from Brasil over the last few years and Flamengo at +350 would still be a very good choice to defend their title as they have the experience and also one of the best teams on the continent. There is a team that can give Flamengo a run for their money though and considering the great season they had along with the scheduling advantages they are going to have as well as the talent on their team, River Plate at +600 is a very good choice to win this competition and return the trophy to Argentinian soil after so long. Flamengo at +350 and River Plate at +600 are the 2 best choices to win this competition but I am siding with River Plate at +600 to be the 2023 Copa Libertadores Champions.
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