- The 'Verdão', three-time champions of the tournament and finalists in 2025, eliminated Liga de Quito on penalties after winning 1-0 in São Paulo and losing 3-2 in Quito, and will play the Semifinals against Fluminense, with the first leg at the Maracanã on October 14.
- Carlos Miguel saved two kicks in the shootout and Abel Ferreira reached Palmeiras's thirteenth Semifinal in the history of the CONMEBOL Libertadores.
Palmeiras still carry a recent piece of unfinished business on the continental stage: the 2025 CONMEBOL Libertadores Final they lost to Flamengo in Lima. The 2026 edition represents a new opportunity for Abel Ferreira's 'Verdão', and the team has already come through two knockout ties, against Cerro Porteño and Liga de Quito, to settle once again among the four best sides on the continent.
The quarterfinals offered a replay of the most dramatic tie of 2025. In the first leg, at the Allianz Parque, Palmeiras won 1-0 with an Agustín Giay header in the 25th minute of the first half, from the rebound of a Vitor Roque shot, the Argentine full-back's first goal in 98 matches for the club. Gonzalo Valle kept Liga in it with several saves and left the tie open for Quito.
The return leg at the Rodrigo Paz Delgado was a roller coaster. Marlon Freitas extended the lead in the 9th minute of the first half, Luis Segovia equalized five minutes later and Vitor Roque, from the penalty spot in the 28th minute of the second half, made it 2-1 to leave the tie 3-1 on aggregate. But Michael Estrada, with two headers in the 45th and 45+3rd minutes of the second half, turned the match around to 3-2 and forced a shootout. That is where Carlos Miguel stepped up: he saved the kicks of Lucas Rodríguez and Luis Segovia and Palmeiras prevailed 4-3.
Opta's data put the night into perspective: Estrada became the first player to score two goals from the 90th minute onward to turn a match around in the history of the tournament, Carlos Miguel was the second Palmeiras goalkeeper to save two penalties in a single CONMEBOL Libertadores shootout and the 'Verdão' reached the Semifinals for the thirteenth time in their history.
The next challenge is a recent continental classic. Fluminense, the 2023 champions who knocked out Platense in the quarterfinals, will be the opponent in the Semifinals: the first leg will be played on Wednesday, October 14 at the Maracanã and the second on Wednesday, October 21 at the NuBank Parque, with the November 28 Final in Montevideo as the prize. Palmeiras are chasing their fourth Gloria Eterna and revenge for Lima.
Palmeiras in the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores: Results and Schedule
Group F – Matchday 1: Junior 1-1 Palmeiras (10' PT Teófilo Gutiérrez, penalty / 11' ST Ramón Sosa)
Group F – Matchday 2: Palmeiras 2-1 Sporting Cristal (27' PT Murilo and 35' ST José Manuel López, penalty / 41' PT Jorge González)
Group F – Matchday 3: Cerro Porteño 1-1 Palmeiras (27' ST Carlos Miguel own goal / 33' PT Jhon Arias)
Group F – Matchday 4: Sporting Cristal 0-2 Palmeiras (32' PT José Manuel López and 5' ST Ramón Sosa)
Group F – Matchday 5: Palmeiras 0-1 Cerro Porteño (3' ST Pablo Vegetti)
Group F – Matchday 6: Palmeiras 4-1 Junior (6' PT and 45' PT Jhon Arias, 40' PT Allan and 6' ST Andreas Pereira / 36' PT Muriel)
Round of 16
First Leg: Palmeiras 1-1 Cerro Porteño (36' ST José Manuel López / 45+4' ST Carlos Miguel own goal)
Second Leg: Cerro Porteño 0-1 Palmeiras (41' PT Gustavo Gómez, assist by Jhon Arias). Palmeiras advanced 2-1 on aggregate.
Quarterfinals
First leg: Palmeiras 1-0 Liga de Quito (25' 1H Agustín Giay)
Second leg: Liga de Quito 3-2 Palmeiras (14' 1H Luis Segovia, 45' 2H and 45+3' 2H Michael Estrada / 9' 1H Marlon Freitas and 28' 2H Vitor Roque, penalty). 3-3 on aggregate; Palmeiras won 4-3 in the penalty shootout, with two saves by Carlos Miguel.
Semifinals
First leg: Fluminense vs. Palmeiras - Wednesday, October 14, 9:30 PM (local time), Estadio Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro.
Second leg: Palmeiras vs. Fluminense - Wednesday, October 21, 9:30 PM (local time), Estadio NuBank Parque, São Paulo.
Palmeiras Head Coach in the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores: Abel Ferreira
The Portuguese coach is synonymous with an era in São Paulo: since his arrival in late 2020, he has led the 'Verdão' to back-to-back CONMEBOL Libertadores titles in 2020 and 2021 -a feat in consecutive editions-, to two Brasileirão titles and to a collection of trophies that placed him among the most successful coaches in the club's history. A full-back in his playing days in Portugal, he arrived in Brazil after coaching Sporting Braga and PAOK.
His 2026 sustains that relevance with a renewed team built around players like Andreas Pereira and Jhon Arias and with continental unfinished business: reclaiming the crown that slipped away in the 2025 Final against Flamengo. After getting past Cerro Porteño in the Round of 16, the only team that had beaten them in the group stage, Abel survived Liga de Quito once again: he won 1-0 in São Paulo, was 3-1 up on aggregate in Quito and watched two Michael Estrada goals in stoppage time force penalties, where Carlos Miguel settled the tie.
Palmeiras thus reach their thirteenth Semifinal in the tournament's history. For Ferreira it will be another all-Brazilian tie, against Fluminense, with the first leg at the Maracanã on October 14 and the return at home a week later, in pursuit of his third Gloria Eterna title as coach of the 'Verdão'.
Full Palmeiras Squad for the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores
Goalkeepers: 1. Carlos Dos Santos - 14. Marcelo Lomba - 21. Kaique Pereira - 72. Kauan Lima - 73. Luiz Souza.
Defenders: 2. Alexander Barboza - 3. Bruno De Lara Fuchs - 4. Agustin Giay - 15. Gustavo Gomez - 43. Luis Roncholeta - 44. Kone Zie - 53. Luccas Gomes - 54. Thiago Nogueira - 56. Arthur Santana - 57. João De Moura Andrade.
Midfielders: 7. Felipe Pereira - 11. Jhon Arias - 17. Marlon Rodrigues - 18. Mauricio Magalhães - 19. Ramon Sosa - 26. Murilo Cerqueira - 29. Miguel Cinoncelli - 30. Lucas Evangelista - 32. Emiliano Martinez - 40. Allan Andrade - 45. Erick Machado - 48. Larson Torna Ferreira - 50. Luis Pacheco - 55. Isaac Farias - 58. Ruan Gomes - 60. Guilherme Nogueira - 65. Rafael Barbosa.
Forwards: 6. Jefte Da Silva - 8. Andreas Hoelgebaum - 9. Vitor Roque - 10. Paulo Sampaio - 12. Khellven Silva - 22. Joaquin Piquerez - 37. Riquelme Marinho - 39. Heittor Da Silva - 41. Eduardo Conceição - 42. Jose Lopez - 46. Derick Araujo Campos - 47. Victor Leite - 49. Juan Ferreira - 52. Luis Gonçalves - 61. Kauã Nascimento Nunes - 66. Andre Ribeiro - 71. Felipe Cunha.
Palmeiras’ Key Player in the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores: Carlos Miguel
The goalkeeper is the reason Palmeiras are still in the race. In Quito, after Liga had turned the match around with two Michael Estrada headers in stoppage time and the tie came down to a shootout, Carlos Miguel saved the kicks of Lucas Rodríguez and Luis Segovia for the 4-3 that put the 'Verdão' into the Semifinals. According to Opta, he is the second Palmeiras goalkeeper to stop two penalties in a single CONMEBOL Libertadores shootout.
His campaign had had a less kind first chapter: in the first leg of the Round of 16 against Cerro Porteño, an own goal of his in added time had turned the 1-0 into 1-1. He responded at La Nueva Olla, where he protected Gustavo Gómez's lead, and did so again in Quito on the most demanding night of the year.
Palmeiras will face Fluminense in the Semifinals and will arrive with the certainty that, when a tie comes down to a single kick, they have a goalkeeper who has already proven he can rise to the occasion.
Palmeiras’ Top Scorers in the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores: Jhon Arias and José Manuel López
Jhon Arias keeps showing up in the big moments. His three group-stage goals keep him as Palmeiras's top scorer in this CONMEBOL Libertadores, level with José Manuel López. He scored the equalizer against Cerro Porteño at La Nueva Olla and bagged a brace in the 4-1 win over Junior that closed the first stage, and in the Round of 16 he won and took the corner that Gustavo Gómez headed in for the 1-0 in Asunción. With that assist he reached eight since 2023 in the competition, the second-best tally in the tournament over that span.
López drew level with the Colombian with his goal in the first leg of the Round of 16, with Palmeiras down to ten men after Andreas Pereira's sending-off, adding to the two he scored against Sporting Cristal during the group stage. In the quarterfinals against Liga de Quito neither of them scored: the 'Verdão''s goals came from Agustín Giay, Marlon Freitas and Vitor Roque.
Palmeiras will play the Semifinals against Fluminense with their internal scoring chart shared. Arias brings unpredictability, assists and the ability to appear in different areas; López, presence in the box and finishing. Two different profiles that account for a good part of Abel Ferreira's attacking options.
Palmeiras’ X-Factor in the 2026 CONMEBOL Libertadores: Ramón Sosa
The forward was involved in both goals that built the tie against Liga de Quito. In the first leg, at the Allianz Parque, he shielded the ball, drove into the box and unleashed the shot that Gonzalo Valle parried for Agustín Giay's header. In the return leg he came off the bench in the 22nd minute of the second half and six minutes later converted the penalty that made it 2-1 on the night and 3-1 on aggregate, the goal that seemed to seal qualification before Michael Estrada's comeback.
In the shootout he took responsibility again and converted Palmeiras's first kick. It was his first goal in this CONMEBOL Libertadores, and it came at the most demanding moment of the campaign. Against Fluminense, Vitor Roque's ability to attack space and create chances for his teammates is once again one of Abel Ferreira's tools for a Semifinal played between two Brazilian stadiums.
Palmeiras’ History in the CONMEBOL Libertadores
Palmeiras are one of the tournament's great modern dynasties: champions in 1999 under Felipão, back-to-back champions in 2020 and 2021 under Abel Ferreira and runners-up in 2025, when they fell to Flamengo in the Final in Lima. Three titles and an almost permanent presence in the decisive stages have set a bar that obliges the 'Verdão' to treat every edition as a chance to return to the top.
The 2026 campaign has already left two knockout ties behind. After finishing second in Group F, they got past Cerro Porteño with a 1-1 in São Paulo and a 1-0 in Asunción, and then survived Liga de Quito: 1-0 at home, 2-3 in Quito and 4-3 on penalties. It is the thirteenth time Palmeiras have played the Semifinals of the CONMEBOL Libertadores, and since 2019 no club has more appearances among the final four.
The road to their fourth Gloria Eterna now offers a Brazilian duel with Fluminense, the 2023 champions, with the first leg at the Maracanã and the return at the NuBank Parque. On the other side of the bracket await Flamengo and Estudiantes; the Final will be played on November 28 in Montevideo.
