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Nacional Aims to Take a Step Towards the Round of 16 Against a River Plate Eager for the Top Spot
Uruguayan side Nacional and Argentine club River Plate will go head-to-head this Tuesday in a match set in the fourth round of Group H in the Copa Libertadores, where crucial points are up for grabs.
In their Gran Parque Central and with sold-out tickets, the Tricolor will seek a victory that would put them one step closer to the round of 16 and the FIFA Club World Cup next year.
At this moment, Álvaro Recoba's team has six points in their group, while River Plate has nine, Paraguayan side Libertad has three, and Venezuelan side Deportivo Táchira has zero.
Given this scenario, Nacional knows that a victory would bring them closer to the next round and allow them to add another three points in the classification table for the Club World Cup.
On the other hand, River Plate arrives in Montevideo as the group leader, knowing that three points would virtually secure them the top spot in their zone.
After defeating Libertad in Asunción, it's likely that Martín Demichelis will field a similar lineup, with young talent Claudio Echeverri starting and Colombian forward Miguel Ángel Borja leading the attack.
Meanwhile, the main doubts for Nacional revolve around whether Recoba keeps Juan Manuel Izquierdo in the defensive line or reintroduces Franco Romero, if young talent Lucas Sanabria earns a spot in the starting lineup, and whether Ruben Bentancourt partners with Gonzalo Carneiro in the attack.
Thus, both Tricolor and Millonario are gearing up for their eighth match in Copa Libertadores history and the fourth encounter between them in Montevideo.