- The Brazilian side claimed a 4-2 victory in the second leg of the Playoffs, with goals from Miguel Terceros, Gabriel Barbosa, Gabriel Menino and Rony, wrapping up the tie with an 8-3 aggregate win.
- El Peixe will face Ecuador’s Macará in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana Round of 16, with the ties to be played between August 11 and 20.
Santos are through to the CONMEBOL Sudamericana Round of 16. On an eventful night at Vila Belmiro, El Peixe defeated Universidad Central of Venezuela 4-2 in the second leg of the Playoffs and wrapped up the tie with an emphatic 8-3 aggregate victory, in a match that began in the worst possible way for the hosts but ended in a comeback, with the substitutes playing a leading role and Neymar making his return to the competition.
The start was a cold shower for Santos. Less than a minute had been played when Samuel Sosa capitalized on an error as Adonis Frías tried to play out from the back and produced a delicate lob over goalkeeper Gabriel Brazão to make it 1-0 to the visitors. The setback forced Santos to regroup on the fly against an opponent that executed its game plan to perfection: concede possession, wait and strike. “We’re not going to have 500 chances, we’re going to have a few. The ones we get, we have to finish them however we can,” Universidad Central coach Daniel Sasso was heard telling his players during the first-half cooling break. His team had already done just that.
Cuca’s side found their response in the 39th minute of the first half, and it came with a Bolivian touch: Miguel Terceros drove forward down the right and, cutting into the box from the corner, fired a left-footed shot across goal and inside the near post to make it 1-1. With the scores level, the coach turned to his bench at halftime, bringing on Neymar, Lucas Veríssimo and Gabriel Bontempo — three changes that transformed the team.
The move for the 2-1 goal, 11 minutes into the second half, summed up the impact of those substitutions. Bontempo burst down the right, reached the byline and cut the ball back for Gabriel Barbosa to head home at the far post. El Peixe’s leading scorer in the competition netted his fourth goal in La Gran Conquista, marking his return after the injury that had kept him out of the first leg. Nine minutes later, Santos struck again at pace: ‘Gabigol’s’ finish bounced off goalkeeper Schiavone and the crossbar, allowing Gabriel Menino to pounce on the rebound and make it 3-1. The full-back, who had also scored in the first leg, earned the distinction of finding the net in both matches of the tie.
Universidad Central, true to their character, refused to give in. In the 26th minute of the second half, following a corner, Mottes turned the ball in with his thigh to make it 3-2, and La U kept pushing until the final whistle. They finished the night with seven shots on target, almost as many as the hosts, proof that the Venezuelan champions bowed out of their return to continental competition with their heads held high, never abandoning their approach.
There was still time for one final flourish. Deep into stoppage time, Rony headed home a Bontempo cross to seal the 4-2 victory. The substitute, who had also scored the previous week, followed Menino in finding the net in both legs of the tie, while Bontempo capped off his performance with his second assist of the match.
With qualification secured, El Peixe already know their next opponent: Ecuador’s Macará, the unbeaten winners of Group A, await in the Round of 16. The first leg will be played in Brazil between August 11 and 13, with the tie to be decided in Ambato a week later. Advancing would take Santos into the quarterfinals, matching their best-ever finish in the competition. Santos remain on course: the road to Barranquilla is still open.
The match in numbers:
- Santos scored eight goals across their two matches against UCV, the same number they scored throughout the group stage of the 2026 CONMEBOL Sudamericana.
- Gabriel Barbosa is the first player to score four goals for Santos in a single edition of the CONMEBOL Sudamericana.
- Neymar made his sixth CONMEBOL Sudamericana appearance and his second as a substitute. Despite playing just 45 minutes, he was Santos’ joint leader in chances created against UCV, with four, level with Gabriel Barbosa and Gabriel Menino.
- The second-highest scorer in the most recent South American Qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup with Bolivia — seven goals, level with Luis Díaz and one behind Lionel Messi — Santos’ Miguel Terceros scored his first goal in CONMEBOL club competitions.
- Samuel Sosa’s goal for UCV after 19 seconds was the earliest in the CONMEBOL Sudamericana since Agustín Almendra scored for Racing against Athletico Paranaense in September 2024 after 17 seconds. It was also the second-fastest goal by a Venezuelan team in the history of the competition, behind Evelio Hernández’s strike for Deportivo Anzoátegui against Deportivo Quito in 2011 after 16 seconds.
- UCV scored the opening goal in three of their five away matches in CONMEBOL competitions, breaking the deadlock against Santos today, Libertad in May and Independiente del Valle in April 2026.
