- Inspired by an imperious Guido Carrillo, the Argentine side showed their quality away from home to beat Universidad Católica 3-0 in Santiago, Chile.
- Alexander Medina's side will face the winners of the tie between Rosario Central and Corinthians in the quarter-finals, with the two sides set to decide their fate next Thursday.
Estudiantes de La Plata have reached the CONMEBOL Libertadores quarter-finals for the second consecutive edition after beating Universidad Católica 3-0 at the Claro Arena, with two goals from Carrillo and one from Joaquín Correa. The first leg in Argentina had ended 1-1, but the 'Pincha' produced a flawless display and never looked vulnerable, even after losing Tiago Palacios to injury in the first half.
The first half produced few clear-cut chances. Estudiantes controlled the game and went into the break ahead, although without dazzling, while Católica — unlike during their impressive Group Stage campaign — were unable to impose their attacking threat.
The first clear opportunity came in the 14th minute. Justo Giani, the Argentine forward for the 'Cruzados', won the ball in the final third after pressing Tomás Palacios before trying his luck from distance, forcing Fernando Muslera into action.
Tiago Palacios, one of the 'Pincha's standout performers in this year's Gloria Eterna, was forced off in the 35th minute with a muscle injury. What could have been an emotional blow for the Argentine side instead proved to be the turning point of the match. His replacement, Joaquín Correa, soon set the 'León' on their way: Baltasar Rodríguez carried the ball forward from midfield, and the Tucumán-born forward made the most of his movement to receive the midfielder's pass, finish at the near post, beat Vicente Bernedo and put the 'Pincha' ahead.
Daniel Garnero, the Argentine manager of the Chilean side, turned to his bench and introduced Clemente Montes — the hero of their away win against Boca Juniors in the Group Stage — despite the forward arriving with a knock.
Eight minutes into the second half, Estudiantes captain Guido Carrillo headed home a precise cross from Eros Mancuso, who had advanced down the right following a good combination with Correa.
Needing a goal and showing more urgency than clarity, the home side, with Fernando Zuqui leading their fightback, pinned Estudiantes back towards Muslera's goal but failed to create any clear-cut opportunities.
Seven minutes from time, Estudiantes found in Carrillo everything Católica had missed without their leading goalscorer, Fernando Zampedri, who was suspended after accumulating yellow cards. Born in Magdalena and a product of Estudiantes de La Plata's academy, the forward got a touch to a cross from Colombian Edwuin Cetré — following a quick attack led by Correa — to make it 3-0 for the 'Pincha'.
Estudiantes could face an all-Argentine quarter-final if Rosario Central overcome Corinthians. The first leg in Rosario ended 0-0, with the decisive second leg set for Thursday at 21:30 local time in São Paulo.
The match in numbers:
- This is the second time Estudiantes have reached the CONMEBOL Libertadores quarter-finals in consecutive editions. They previously achieved the feat in the 2009 and 2010 campaigns.
- Estudiantes ended a run of four CONMEBOL Libertadores away matches without a win (2W 2L), recording their first away victory of the current edition. They also registered their biggest winning margin in a knockout-stage match in CONMEBOL competitions.
- Estudiantes recorded consecutive wins in Chile for only the second time in their CONMEBOL competition history, both by a 3-0 scoreline (against Universidad de Chile and today). The first time came in their first two such away matches in the Libertadores, a run that also included a victory over Universidad Católica.
- Joaquín Correa is the first Estudiantes player to score a goal after coming off the bench in the first half of a Libertadores or Sudamericana match. None of the previous 26 goals scored by Pincha substitutes had come before half-time.
- Guido Carrillo scored multiple goals in a CONMEBOL Libertadores match for the second time, following his hat-trick against Barcelona in 2015. He has now taken his Estudiantes tally in the competition to 13 goals, level with Juan Ramón Verón and Mauro Boselli as the club's all-time leading scorers in the Libertadores.
- Joaquín Correa scored his first CONMEBOL Libertadores goal in his seventh appearance in the competition. The Tucumán-born forward had previously scored twice in the Sudamericana, including a goal for Estudiantes in the 2014 Round of 16.
