Sport Huancayo vs Caracas Predictions, Betting Tips and Match Previews

Tuesday’s Copa Sudamericana second round, second leg clash sees Peruvians Sport Huancayo playing host to Venezuelans Caracas. Huancayo will be looking to come back from a 2-0 first leg defeat by making the most of their high altitude advantage.

Indeed, in normal circumstances, after losing so comfortably away from home, you’d write off Sport’s chances of advancing, but with the match set to be played some 3,259 metres above sea level, the tie is not over, with conditions far from what Caracas are used to.

Sport advanced from the last round unexpectedly, crushing Chileans Union Espanola 3-0 on home soil to reach this point after a 0-0 draw on the road and whilst they’ve left themselves with far more work to do this time around, the side will still be hopeful of turning the tie on its head. A 2-1 home win over Universitario at the weekend has confidence high coming into the clash and building on a strong home record that reads 8 wins from 13 fixtures in 2018 is the only aim.

Meanwhile, the target for Caracas is clear; defend the lead no matter the cost. Caracas were expected to win their home leg last week and didn’t disappoint, putting in a good showing, but the real test now awaits in such a grueling climate.

Caracas haven’t been in action since last week’s game between the two, so are at least well rested, but having lost 2 of their last 3 matches on their travels, confidence can’t be too high upon arrival as the visitors look to extend their continental run which has already seen them dump out Chileans Everton.

Ultimately, this was always going to be a tie in which the victor was whoever used their home advantage the most effectively and with Caracas already having done so pretty well, the ball is now in Huancayo’s court.

We can’t stress enough how big of a factor the altitude will play over the 90 minutes and for that reason, alongside Caracas’s less than impressive recent away showings, we can’t write the hosts off just yet.

The bet that really stands out is backing the Peruvians to win to nil. Caracas have absolutely no reason to attack from the off and will look to sit deep and conserve precious energy for defensive purpose. Huancayo will likely be on the front foot throughout the entirety of the match and considering the strength they’ve shown on their own patch this year, we fancy them to take Caracas to penalties with a 2-0 win.