Palestino vs Atlético Venezuela Predictions, Betting Tips and Match Previews

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Estadio Nacional Julio Martínez Prádanos

Palestino

Atlético Venezuela

Palestino are back in the Sudamericana for the second year running. If they can match last year’s effort then they will be very pleased with their work. Los Arabes saw off Libertad, Real Garcilaso and most famously, Flamengo, before narrowly going out 2-1 on aggregate to Argentina giants San Lorenzo. A 6th place finish in last year’s Apertura has brought them here for this tie.

Last year may have been a good one for the Santiago based club but 2017 certainly hasn’t been so far. The end of 15 goal man Leandro Benegas’ loan has seen goal threat heavily reduced and the side are currently rock bottom of the Clausura after 4 games, having lost 3 and drawn just the one. On a positive note, the draw that stopped the losing run did come on Saturday, 1-1 away at Antofagasta.

It’s fair to say the road to the Sudamericana has been a rocky one for Atletico Venezuela. They were only formed in 2009 but have since been promoted, relegated and promoted once again with a financial crisis sandwiched in between. This tie marks their first on the continental stage.

Atletico are 5 games into the new domestic campaign. Results have been mixed, with two wins, two losses and a draw. They should be coming to the game relatively fresh given they haven’t played since last Friday. That game was a 2-1 defeat away at Deportivo La Guaira. While they will not be happy with that result, you expect they would bite your hand off for a similar one tonight, as they look to leave themselves with some hope in the second leg.

There is undoubtedly a big gap in quality between the two sides and that is reflected in the odds. Palestino will see this as the chance to kick start their season. It’s a massive occasion for the visiting side too, a truly historic moment for a club so young. Palestino should have enough quality to win the match, but we do not see them running away with it on current form. The visitors will sit back and look to give themselves a chance in the return leg.

All 4 of Palestino’s home games in last years Sudamericana ended with one goal. Three of those were Palestino wins. A similar scoreline tonight is not out of the question but we fancy them to win the game 2-0. Atletico will pose very little threat in an attacking sense but will be determined at the back and shouldn’t be carved open too often. Another low scoring home win for Palestino in the Copa looks likely and we believe there is good value in the bet.