Jeremy St. Louis

The first stage of the 2019 Copa Libertadores qualifiers kicks off on Tuesday, January 22 and features six teams vying for a spot in the competition proper, which begins in March.

Bolivar of Bolivia

Bolivar are the most popular team in the country and the only side from the landlocked nation to advance to the Copa Libertadores semifinals twice (1986 & 2014) and to the Copa Sudamericana Finals (2004).

They qualified as the fourth and final team from Bolivia based on the Apertura results from last spring.

The side are led by CF Marcos Riquelme and a name familiar to La Liga fans - Real Madrid academy graduate Juanmi (Jose Callejon's twin brother).

Between them, the pair scored 49 goals last season alongside William Ferreira, who completed a formidable trident with the duo, scored a further 20 goals. This season, however, the Uruguayan striker has left to join Always Ready in La Paz.

They come into the first stage of the Copa in mixed form - after going unbeaten in eight of nine games between September and November, the side lost three of their last five to end 2018.

They will open 2019 against last season's Apertura Champions Jorge Wilstermann before welcoming Uruguayan side Defensor Sporting.

Delfin of Ecuador

Having come into existence in 1989, the Manta-based club is making only its second appearance in the Copa Libertadores. They were Serie A runners-up in 2017 and to date the only team from the Manabi Province to appear in an international tournament.

Delfin qualified as the fourth best team in Ecuador's Serie A - they finished five points back of championship finalists Emelec, who lost the playoff to LDU Quito for the title.

Delfin rely on Carlos Garces to provide the spark; the 28-year-old was among only five players in the league in double-digits in scoring, and of his 10 goals, seven broke the deadlock in games.

In 41 appearances, the hometown boy has scored 20 goals or roughly a goal every second appearance - exactly what you want from your frontman.

They enter this first stage having gone unbeaten in 12 of their last 14 games dating back to September, including cleansheets in three of their last four wins.

Delfin will open their Copa campaign at home to Paraguayan side Nacional on January 22nd.

Nacional Asuncion of Paraguay

The nine-time Paraguayan champions are one of the country's oldest institutions but have only recently enjoyed domestic and international success.

They have captured three top-flight titles since 2009, and in 2014 were Copa Libertadores finalists where they lost to San Lorenzo 2-1 on aggregate.

The side is managed by former Argentine defender Fernando Gamboa, who made his name playing for Newell's Old Boys but also spent time at both Boca Juniors and River Plate.

He has managed mostly in Argentina - this is his first job in Paraguay.

Young Forward Adam Bareiro was the team's leading scorer in 2018 (19 goals in 40 appearances), but he has moved to Liga MX side Monterrey leaving Juan Vieyra as the team's top sniper, with seven goals.

They come into the first phase of the Copa having become draw specialists during the business end of the Clausura campaign: 4D 1W in their last five games to close 2018.

Nacional are away to Delfin to open first phase qualifying on January 22nd.

Real Garcilaso of Peru

This club was founded a decade ago but they have already been runners-up in the Primera Division three times, once in the Apertura and twice in the Clausura.

They also have a Cup title to their name, having won the Copa Peru just two years into their existence.

They are managed by Chilean Hector Tapia, who won an Intertoto Cup as a player at Lille in 2004. This is his first managerial job outside of Chile.

Garcilaso qualified as the fourth-place finishers in the Apertura last term and missed out on a group stage berth by a single point.

A team of fine margins, with 19 goals scored and 19 goals conceded, Real Garcilaso were the only team that could boast a truly even goal difference. In addition, 12 of their games since the end of July have been decided by a single goal.

This is their fourth Copa Libertadores appearance since 2013 but the first time they have made an appearance in the tournament’s Preliminary Phase.

Their best finish was a quarterfinals showing in 2013 when they went out to Santa Fe of Colombia.

32-year-old forward Alfredo Ramua is the team’s creative force, racking up nine goals and an impressive 20 assists in 42 appearances.

They enter the Copa tournament unbeaten in five of their last six games (2W 3D) and will head to Caracas to take on Deportivo La Guaira in this first stage January 23rd.

Defensor Sporting of Uruguay

The four-time Uruguayan champions were Copa semifinalists in 2014, missing out on a spot in the final to Paraguayan side Nacional. This will be their 13th appearance in the tournament.

They qualified as the fourth and final team from Uruguay, missing out on a second stage berth on goal-difference to Danubio.

The club is managed by former Atletico Madrid and Defensor Forward Jorge da Silva, who was appointed in mid-December.

On the pitch, the club are led by Alvaro Navarro - the 33-year-old forward has eight goals in 13 appearances. Youngster Pablo Lopez is the club's next highest scorer with three goals, but he has not hit the target since August.

In terms of their team form, the club has not played a game since early November so it's anyone's guess. They finished the year having lost four of their last five games in the top-flight and were outscored 7-3 in those games.

Their first game of 2019 is versus Bolivar in the Copa Libertadores.

Deportivo La Guaira of Venezuela

The Caracas-based team has won two Copa de Venezuela titles in the past five seasons and have only been in the top-flight since 2009.

They finished fifth in the Apertura last season and enter the Copa as one of four Venezuelan teams.

Depor are managed by Daniel Farias, who typically deploys his team in a 4-2-3-1 formation.

In his 18 games in charge, Farias has a record of 9W 5D 4L, but only one loss since mid-August.

Darwin Gonzalez is the statistical leader with 13 goals in 23 appearances in 2018. However, with no goals since a brace back in early November, they will need him to get firing again.

Gonzalez was the top-scorer in the Clausura with 11 goals in 17 matches.

They come into the Copa likely happy to turn the page on 2018 - they finished the year with just two victories from their last eight matches, and failed to find the back of the net in three of their last four.

They will host Real Garcilaso on January 23rd.