Botafogo vs. Penarol: Match Preview, Odds & Prediction

On Wednesday, Botafogo will host Penarol at Estadio Olimpico Nilton Santos in the first leg of their Copa Libertadores semi-final encounter. This will mark Botafogo's return to the tournament after a 60-year absence.

Fogo advanced past Sao Paulo to the quarterfinals with a last-second penalty shootout victory, while the Uruguayans advanced past Flamengo with a 1-0 aggregate win.

Previous Matches and Head-to-head

Botafogo fans have been waiting since 1963 for their club to reach the semi-finals of the Libertadores.

The current leaders of Brasileiro Serie A were able to maintain composure in the shootout despite letting Sao Paulo score an equalizer three minutes before the conclusion of the second-leg match.

Even though they lost their most recent encounter, a 3-2 loss to Juventude in the Brazilian top division in August, Artur Jorge's squad is now riding a 12-match winning streak across all competitions.

With three wins in a row at Estadio Olimpico Nilton Santos, Fogo is undefeated in its last four home matches in this tournament.

They lost the second leg 4-0 in 1963 after drawing 1-1 in their first encounter at this level against Santos; on Wednesday, they will try to win their first-ever semi-final match.

In their lone prior home meeting against Penarol in 1973, Estrella Solitaria won 4-1, ensuring they had never lost a Libertadores match over Uruguayan opponents.

Penarol has not advanced beyond the tournament's quarterfinals since 2011, thanks to some solid defensive play in recent months.

In their previous six Libertadores matches, Diego Aguirre's squad has kept a clean sheet three times and allowed one goal or fewer.

Penarol became the first Uruguayan team to reach the tournament's semi-finals since Defensor Sporting was knocked out in the same round in 2014 by Paraguay's Club Nacional (2-1 on aggregate).

With all three of their wins coming in Uruguay's top division, Manyas has gone three games undefeated in a row.

A 1-0 triumph against Flamengo in the quarterfinals propelled Penarol into the next round, and they have won four of their past five away matches in all competitions.

This is just Decano's second knockout-round victory in Brazil; their first came in 2011 at Estadio Beira-Rio against Internacional (2-1). Their most recent away win was against Flamengo.

Botafogo vs. Penarol Team News

With knee ailments keeping them out until October at the earliest, Botafogo may be without Rafael and Jeffinho for this first match. Additionally, Gatito Fernandez will be banned after his straight red card in the second leg against Sao Paulo.

John saved one penalty in the shootout and saw another go over the crossbar, allowing his team to advance. Thiago Almada scored the team's only goal in that match.

Penarol started the same eleven players in both legs of their quarterfinal encounter against Flamengo; Camilo Mayada was the only player who started in the first leg but did not play in the second leg.

Their only goal in the first leg against Flamengo came from Javier Cabrera in the thirteenth minute. Washington Aguerre has kept a clean sheet in his last four Libertadores matches, advancing them to the semi-finals.

Our predictions

Botafogo to win @ 1.41 on Sky247.ng

Even if Penarol's defense is tough to break down, Fogo's defense is as strong, so we still think they'll find a way to score, just as they have all season.

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