Fluminense will host Deportivo La Guaira on Wednesday at 21:30 Brasília time in the sixth and final round of Group C of the Copa Libertadores, with the home side needing the kind of result that keeps its season moving. José Cabero, listed as FIFA-CHI, will referee the match at the Maracaná.
For Fluminense, the equation is simple and unforgiving. It must finish with more points than Bolívar to reach the round of 16, and it will advance if it wins while Bolívar draws or loses. It can also go through with a draw if Bolívar loses in Santa Cruz de la Sierra. Deportivo La Guaira, by contrast, needs to win in Rio and then hope Bolívar slips.
The match carries weight because the group table has left little room for error. Fluminense is tied on five points with Bolívar and trails on the head-to-head tiebreaker, while Deportivo La Guaira has three points and has yet to win in the tournament. The source says Independiente Rivadavia already leads the group with 13 points, leaving the race for the second qualifying place still alive going into the final night.
Fluminense will not be at full strength, but it does get several important pieces back. Defender Ignácio is dealing with a fracture in the fourth metacarpal, while Guga and Savarino returned after being rested against Mirassol. Martinelli is among the starters after recovering from a left thigh injury, and Alisson is still working back from discomfort in his right calf. Ganso was left out while negotiating with a club in Serie A.
That makes the selection picture as important as the standings. Fluminense has enough of its core back to control its own fate, but the absences and half-fitness concerns show how tight the margin has become at the end of the group stage. Deportivo La Guaira advanced after leading the qualification stage of the Apertura, yet it has not translated that form into a Copa Libertadores win.
One side arrives with qualification in reach and the other with pride and a narrow route to salvage the campaign. Fluminense does not need help to settle its place in the next round; it only needs to do its job and avoid leaving the outcome to someone else in Santa Cruz de la Sierra.
