Flamengo vs Internacional Predictions

Thursday’’s Copa Libertadores quarter final, first leg clash sees Brazilians Flamengo and Internacional doing battle at the Maracana. The hosts will be looking to open up an advantage to take with them into the second leg..

With the most expensively constructed squad that is packed full of big name stars, Flamengo came into the Libertadores amongst the favourites to win it and thus far, they’ve met all expectations. The side first made it through a group containing San Jose, Penarol and LDU Quito, prior to staging an excellent comeback in the round of 16 to beat Emelec on penalties after a 2-2 aggregate draw.

Now facing a domestic rival they know well, Jorge Jesus’ men know they’ll have to be at their best to get the better of Internacional and reach the semi finals. Securing a win on Thursday is of paramount importance given how strong Inter are as hosts but that’s something Flamengo can be confident in doing with their own home record incredibly strong; reading 13 matches unbeaten, 11 of which wins.

Meanwhile, Internacional were considered something of a dark horse to lift the Libertadores title and that remains the case. Colorado don’t quite have the same financial muscle as other sides in the competition but have thus far looked strong in it, making it through a group containing River Plate, Alianza Lima and Palestino, prior to dispatching of Uruguayans Nacional in the last round.

With a talented squad that has good quality in all areas, Inter certainly won’t be apprehensive coming into this tie but know that this first leg is a tough one. The side are far more impressive when playing as hosts and having lost 4 of their last 7 away games, all focus is on merely ensuring they remain in the tie come the end of Thursday.

Ultimately, this is probably the most interesting of the four Libertadores quarter finals set to be contested and calling a winner looks very tough. Whoever best uses their home advantage will likely be the deciding factor, with both teams hugely impressive on their own patch but a bit inconsistent when travelling.

As such, the onus is very much on Flamengo in this first leg and all things considered, we’re more than happy to back them winning the match. They’ve scored an incredible average of 2.69 goals a game over their 13 match unbeaten home streak and having won their last 2 home games against Inter, they could well run out 2-1 winners on Thursday.