- The Uruguayan side and Atlético Mineiro will decide the second finalist of the CONMEBOL Libertadores in Montevideo, following the Galo's 3-0 victory in the first leg.
- Marcelo Méndez's side will look to draw on their unbeaten home record as they attempt to overturn a challenging tie against the competition's reigning runners-up.
Atlético Mineiro will travel to the Uruguayan capital aiming to reach their third consecutive final in CONMEBOL competitions, having featured in the 2024 CONMEBOL Libertadores and the 2025 CONMEBOL Sudamericana.
Montevideo City Torque vs. Atlético Mineiro
Atlético Mineiro travel to Montevideo with one foot in the Final. In the first leg at the Arena MRV, they defeated Montevideo City Torque 3-0, with goals from Reinier and Bernard in the 37th and 42nd minutes of the first half, respectively, and Thiago Borbas in the 80th minute. History is on their side: according to Opta, in 17 of the 19 previous instances in which a team won the first leg of a CONMEBOL competition Semi-final by three or more goals, the opposition failed to overturn the deficit. The most recent exception, however, serves as a reminder that there is still everything to play for: Palmeiras lost 3-0 to Liga in Quito before turning the tie around with a 4-0 victory in Brazil. On Wednesday, at the Estadio Centenario, Torque must win by three goals to force a penalty shootout.
Marcelo Méndez's side already know what it takes to stage a comeback. In the Quarter-finals, they lost 2-0 to Cienciano in Cusco before turning the tie around with a 3-0 win in Montevideo, thanks in part to two goals from Salomón Rodríguez. They have also never lost a home match in CONMEBOL competitions, remaining unbeaten in 11 fixtures, ten of them in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana. Rodríguez, the competition's leading scorer with seven goals, has scored four of the team's last five home goals, while Franco Torgnascioli, who has played every minute of their campaign, ranks second among goalkeepers for saves in the tournament, with 40. If Torque overturn the deficit, they will become the first Uruguayan club to reach a CONMEBOL Sudamericana Final.
Montevideo City Torque in the 2026 CONMEBOL Sudamericana: results, squad and fixtures
Atlético Mineiro, last season's runners-up, are aiming to reach their third consecutive continental Final, following their appearances in the 2024 CONMEBOL Libertadores and 2025 CONMEBOL Sudamericana showpieces. Eduardo Domínguez's side eliminated Santos on penalties in the Quarter-finals, overturning a 2-0 first-leg deficit with a 4-2 victory in Belo Horizonte. They were clinical in the opening leg of this Semi-final, enjoying 65.5% possession and registering 16 shots, eight of them on target. Tomás Cuello, who created the move that led to the opening goal, has three goals and four assists to his name. Bernard, with five goals, is the first Atlético Mineiro player to reach that tally in a single edition of the competition, while Renan Lodi provided the assist for Borbas's third goal. At the back, Gabriel Delfim has started the last three matches and, according to Opta's post-shot expected goals model, the team's goalkeepers have prevented 6.5 goals in this edition, the highest figure among the four semi-finalists.
Atlético Mineiro in the 2026 CONMEBOL Sudamericana: results, squad and fixtures
The tie brings together two teams at opposite ends of the statistical spectrum. Among the sides that progressed beyond the group stage, Torque have the lowest average number of passes per sequence (2.40), while Atlético Mineiro have the highest (3.88). The 'Ciudadano' play 22.9% of their passes long and have scored four goals from direct attacks and seven from set pieces. The 'Galo', meanwhile, have put together 137 passing sequences of ten or more passes, compared with 49 for their opponents, and have scored four goals from build-up attacks. Those figures could prove decisive in the return leg: Torque need goals, but when drawing or trailing in this edition, they have averaged just 45.2% possession.
Match details
Stadium: Estadio Centenario, Montevideo
Date and kick-off: Wednesday, 21 October, 19:00 (local time)
Referee: Cristian Garay (CHI)
VAR: Diego Flores (CHI)
The match in numbers
- In 17 of the 19 previous instances in which a team won the first leg of a CONMEBOL competition Semi-final by at least three goals, the opposition failed to overturn the deficit in the return leg. One of the exceptions came in the most recent such case, when Palmeiras lost 3-0 to LDU Quito in Ecuador before winning the second leg 4-0 in Brazil.
- City Torque have never lost a home match in CONMEBOL competitions, remaining unbeaten in 11 games, ten of them in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana. If they avoid defeat against Atlético Mineiro, they will draw level with Atlético Goianiense for the most matches played in CONMEBOL Sudamericana history without suffering a defeat.
- Atlético Mineiro will be aiming to secure their place in the Final against City Torque. The only previous occasion on which they reached continental finals in three consecutive seasons came in the 1990s: the 1995 Copa CONMEBOL, 1996 Copa Máster de CONMEBOL and 1997 Copa CONMEBOL. The 'Galo' have reached the Finals of the 2024 CONMEBOL Libertadores and 2025 CONMEBOL Sudamericana.
- Bernard scored in the first leg against City Torque and became the first Atlético Mineiro player to register five goals in a single edition of the CONMEBOL Sudamericana. He is also the club's all-time leading scorer in the competition, with eight goals, followed by team-mate Tomás Cuello (5).
- Atlético Mineiro have scored five goals from outside the penalty area in the 2026 CONMEBOL Sudamericana, including Bernard's strike against City Torque. Since 2013, only one team have surpassed that tally in a single edition of the competition: Athletico Paranaense, with six in 2021.
- Salomón Rodríguez has scored four of City Torque's last five home goals in the 2026 CONMEBOL Sudamericana. Three of those came in the final ten minutes of the first half, two against Tigre and one against Cienciano.
- Atlético Mineiro's Tomás Cuello could draw level with Fabricio Bustos (30) for the most wins by a player in CONMEBOL Sudamericana history. The 'Galo' midfielder has recorded 29 victories in 43 appearances in the competition since making his debut in 2017.
- Eduardo Domínguez (Atlético Mineiro) could become the fourth coach to reach two CONMEBOL Sudamericana Finals, following Reinaldo Rueda (2016 and 2017), Luis Zubeldía (2020 and 2023) and Jorge Sampaoli (2011 and 2025). The current 'Galo' coach previously reached the Final with Huracán in 2015.
- Renan Lodi, who has provided assists in his last two CONMEBOL Sudamericana appearances, has been involved in more attacking sequences than any other Atlético Mineiro player in this edition, with 46, at least 15 more than any of his team-mates (Tomás Cuello, 31).
- Among the teams that progressed beyond the group stage of the 2026 CONMEBOL Sudamericana, City Torque and Atlético Mineiro occupy opposite ends of the rankings for average passes per sequence, with 2.40 and 3.88, respectively.
Montevideo City Torque vs Atlético Mineiro kits
