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River Plate will welcome Fortaleza EC to the Estadio Monumental for a Copa Libertadores matchday two fixture on Wednesday.
The hosts come into the game on the back of a 4-2 home win over Argentinos Juniors in domestic action on Sunday. Four different men got on the scoresheet to guide Los Millonarios to all three points.
Prior to that, they secured maximum points in a 1-0 away victory over Alianza Lima in the Copa Libertadores. Matias Suarez scored the winning goal in the 65th minute, two minutes after stepping off the bench.
Fortaleza suffered consecutive defeats on the continent and in domestic action. They fell to a 2-1 defeat to Colo Colo on home turf. They followed that up with a 1-0 defeat to Cuiaba in front of their fans, with Everton scoring the match-winner in the eighth minute.
River Plate vs Fortaleza Head-to-Head
This will be the first continental meeting between the two sides. River Plate already have an edge, having secured a win on matchday one.
The hosts have currently won four of their last five games in all competitions, while Fortaleza are on a two-game losing streak, with two wins registered in their last five matches.
River Plate form guide (all competitions): W-W-W-L-W
Fortaleza form guide (all competitions): L-L-W-D-W
River Plate vs Fortaleza Team News
River Plate
Felipe Pena Biafore, Franco Paredes and Robert Rojas are all unavailable due to injuries, while Antonio Paradela has tested positive for COVID-19.
Injuries: Felipe Pena Biafore, Franco Paredes, Robert Rojas
Suspension: None
Unavailable: Antonio Paradela
Fortaleza
There are no suspension concerns or injuries for the visitors to worry about.
Injuries: None
Suspension: None
River Plate vs Fortaleza Predicted XI
River Plate (4-4-2): Franco Armani (GK); Milton Casco, Hector Martinez, Elias Gomez, Robert Rojas; Diego Arcosa, Enzo Perez, Enzo Fernandez, Santiago Simon; Julian Alvarez, Juan Quintero
Fortaleza (4-3-3): Max Walef (GK); Yago Pikachu, Anthony Landazuri, Marcelo Conceicao, Titi, Juninho Capixaba; Hercules Pereira, Jose Welison, Lucas Lima; Moises, Renato Kayser
River Plate vs Fortaleza Prediction
River Plate are a vastly superior side and also have a higher pedigree at this stage of continental action.
The Beunos Aires giants are overwhelming favorites and, barring an unlikely upset, we are backing the hosts to secure a comfortable victory in addition to a clean sheet.
Prediction: River Plate 2-0 Fortaleza
