Santos v Audax – Estadio Urbano Caldeiraat 20:00
It’s been an interesting week in South America as the first round of the knockout phases of the Copa Libertedores came to a conclusion. Corinthians crashed out as they drew at home to Nacional 2-2 after a 1-0 defeat in their first leg of the tie. Their rivals Sao Paulo had a considerable amount more success as they comfortably beat Touluca to advance to the quarter final.
We’ll be looking at the two state finals this weekend, first up we’ll be taking a look at the game between Santos and Audax which finished one a piece in the opening leg. It was a really tough game for Santos who spent large portions of the game chasing the ball as Audax moved it along their back line and through the midfield.
Audax have drawn plaudits from across Brazil as they pushed Santos all the way in this game and in the end were unlucky not to pick up the win. Audax will look to play their usual style where they attempt to dictate possession, but they might struggle especially at Santos’ Vila Belmiro where Piexe have and outstanding record.
You have to think that this is Sanots’ only real chance to win some silverware this season and they’ll need to do so in order to appease the shareholders who will bay for blood if the club have a trophy less season which would most likely result in both Gabriel Barbosa and Lucas Lima being sold to the highest bidder.
Santos will still have awful memories of two seasons ago when they were in a decent position at home to Ituano (1-0 down going into the home leg), I remember this game vividly as it was my biggest ever bet at the time where I backed Santos -1.00 (high four figures) only for them to win one nil and void my biggest ever bet!
This year I think that Santos should get the job done especially after their first leg result, but Audax won’t make it easy for them and I think it could be a very tight game.
Asian Handicap Betting Recommendation: Under 2.5 goals at 1.98
Prices correct at the time of writing.
By @LewisJones1992
Eastbridge Soccer Betting Broker, winners welcome!
