Club Nacional Asunción vs Sporting Cristal Prediction: Expecting a Draw in Leg 1

In the upcoming fixture of Copa Libertadores second round, Leg 1, Club Nacional Asuncion will take on Sporting Cristal at the Estádio Defensores del Chaco in Asunción. Moving in the second round of Libertadores, Nacional is coming off a defeat against Libertad (1-2) in the Paraguayan Primera, whereas Sporting Cristal is coming off a win against FBC Melgar (1-0). Undoubtedly, the two teams are always on top of their game and are representing their countries in the matchup. This will be the first outing between the two sides, making the matchup completely interesting and eventful.

After starting poorly in Libertadores, Nacional managed to seize some momentum against General Caballero (0-1). Moving forward, Nacional defeated Sport Huancayo (3-1) in leg 2, scoring all three goals in the second half of play. Cristhian Ocampos, Mathias Martinez, and David Fleitas were spot on, giving their side an immense boost towards the end. However, the winning momentum for Nacional Asuncion got disturbed after losing to Libertad (1-2). With a prominent goal scoring average of 2.00 goals per game, Club Nacional will be backing its boys to come out positive and score. In comparison to the scoring average, Nacional’s conceding average is 1.50 goals per game, which might turn out to be little costly.

As Sporting Cristal qualified for the Libertadores stage directly, it will be looking to take on Nacional with a prepared mindset. Sporting Cristal has delivered decent performances recently, coming off a win against Melgar (1-0) in Primera Division. With the likes of Yoshimar Yotun, Brenner, and Corozo in the lineup, Sporting is likely to experiment with concrete changes. For the upcoming contest, the most encouraging stat for Sporting is when they lead 0-1, they manage to win 90% of their away matches. If Sporting strikes early, we might have an interesting matchup.

With the ongoing dominating run in the Peruvian Primera Division, Sporting Cristal is on top of its game. On the other hand, the Paraguayan side is also coming off a win against Huancayo in Libertadores qualifying round. Among the key stats which might be worrying Sporting is that they have failed to win any of their last three away matches in Copa Libertadores. Apart from the individual stats, I believe that the upcoming contest is likely to end in a draw, with both teams to score a goal each.

• Full Time Result - Draw for 1.80
• Both Teams To Score - Yes for 1.96
• Total Under 2.5 for 1.72