LDU Quito Look to Close Out the Aguilas at Home.

By: Mauro | June 3rd, 2008

Liga Deportiva Universitaria de Quito vs. Club América (Estadio La Casa Blanca, Quito, Ecuador)

LIVE @ 6pm PST on Fox Sports Español. Gamecast here. Online TV here.

América want to continue to ride the emotional wave that brought them this far in the competition and LDU Quito are going to continue playing their style of football in order to meet the winner of the Fluminense - Boca semi-final in the final matches.

LDU play with a certain maturity, nice ball movement, very organized movement of their lines with precision in getting to the penalty area and a good goal scoring form.

América have been all over the map, but since Luna took over, América’s strong suit seems to be a much more solid defense than we saw in the group stage, and speed on the counter attack with Germán Villa placing perfectly weighted passes to Salvador Cabañas and Enrique Esqueda, with which they had some great success over their opponents leading up to this match.

América coach Juan Antonio Luna is not going to be able to count on Sebastián Dominguez and Alejandro Arguello for tonight’s match. But, LDU coach Edgardo Bauza is also going to be missing Luís Bolaños, who has scored some important goals for his squad in this year’s tournament. Dominguez and Bolaños were sent off on the same play in last week’s match

Luna will be able to count on his leading goal scorer Cabañas who has scored in Quito with the Paraguayan National team in the World Cup qualifiers last year. Look for him, as always, to be a force up front with partner Enrique Esqueda and Germán Villa in the midfield pulling the strings. Also, Ismael Rodriguez is going to be back for the Aguilas now that he’s recovered from his injury.

LDU Quito will have Joffre Guerrón, who is playing his best football right now and is very dangerous anywhere near the penalty area much less inside it. He’s got a wide-ish stalky body which makes it easy for him to overpower defenders off the ball and a brilliant right foot. He’s currently drawing the eye of teams like Boca Juniors and even tonight’s opponent, América, as possible transfer destinations for him next season. Don’t expect to see him in the LDU white jersey for long.

LDU will also be able to count on Damián Manso, Patricio Urrutia in the midfield and the quick Claudio Bieler up front. Bauza has come out and said that his squad will be standing steadfast to their footballing philosophy and we shouldn’t see a defensive set from them tonight. Basically, they are going to come out and try to take América apart.

Last week’s match ended 1-1 and with that result, América needs either at very least a 2-2 draw or a win of any sort to advance. LDU Quito, on the other hand, could advance with as little as a 0-0 draw or a win of any sort. These options are an indication of how accessible qualification for the finals is for both sides and how disputed this match is going to be.

Bottom Line: LDU are unbeaten at home but have given up three draws in La Casa Blanca Stadium in this year’s competition. Not a good stat for LDU fans. América, since Luna has taken over, has had mixed success away from home. One win and one loss, but the uncertainty in their results and performances makes it difficult to figure out which América team will show up.

My pick: 2-1 to LDU Quito. For the first time in their club’s history, the Ecuadorians will reach the final. I believe that América has not faced a team in this competition that is this neat and organized and dangerous and lethal at the same time.

I believe that América’s win over Flamengo in the second leg of their round of 16 match was the result of a combination of events. Flamengo was distracted by the result they achieved in Mexico coupled with the celebration they wanted to give their exiting coach Joel Santana.

Also, América was spurred by the scrutiny and harsh criticism they received from their own press for the horrible domestic season they had. In the quarter-finals, Santos lacked the star power that América could afford to combine and that was the difference maker in the end.

The emotional wave is coming to an end, it’s all just white wash now with little push left. It’s all on the players and I don’t think they can come together to make it happen.

Be sure to check the CONMEBOL website for any and all information regarding the Copa Libertadores, like stats, results and upcoming matches. It even has a pull down menu where you can check out past editions of the Libertadores.