- Boca and Vasco enter the Semifinals with almost identical figures for long passing sequences, direct attacks and expected goals; the difference lies in where they regain possession.
- Atlético Mineiro and Montevideo City Torque are complete opposites: four goals from build-up attacks and none from direct attacks for the 'Galo', compared with four from direct attacks and none from build-up attacks for the 'Ciudadano'.
Four teams, two ties and one question ahead of each first leg: what does each side bring to the table? The answers lie in their styles of play, and Opta data collected since the start of the Group Stage help provide a clearer picture. This is not a prediction, but a key tactical insight for each tie, based on how the CONMEBOL Sudamericana Semifinalists have attacked and defended on their way to the last four.
Boca Juniors–Vasco da Gama: the difference lies in pressing
Few ties feature two teams with such similar profiles. Boca have recorded 116 sequences of ten or more passes in their 12 matches this year across the CONMEBOL Libertadores and CONMEBOL Sudamericana, while Vasco have registered 112 in their 12 matches in the competition. The figures are equally close for build-up attacks (23 to 21), direct attacks (28 to 27), expected goals (19.9 to 19.7) and shots (191 to 176). The only notable difference in their attacking patterns lies in the areas of the pitch they favour: the 'Xeneize' distribute their attacks almost evenly across the pitch, while the 'Cruzmaltino' channel 41.1% of their attacking actions down the left.
The real contrast emerges in where they regain possession. Boca have won the ball back 91 times within the first 40 metres of the opposition's half, with 14 of those recoveries leading to shots, compared with 62 and nine respectively for Vasco. The Brazilian side defend deeper, with 59.1% of their defensive actions taking place in their defensive third and 358 clearances compared with Boca's 230. They also break quickly: Vasco have launched 29 counterattacks, more than any other team this season, while their goalkeeper's goal kicks average 50.3 metres, the longest distance among the eight semifinalists across both competitions, compared with Boca's 34.8 metres.
When Vasco take the lead, they surrender possession, averaging 45.0%, while Boca retain more control of the ball, with 52.7%. The Rio de Janeiro side have kept seven clean sheets in 12 matches, compared with four for the 'Xeneize', who have also scored eight of their last 11 home goals in the second half. The key at La Bombonera will be which team can win the ball back closer to their opponent's goal.
Atlético Mineiro–Montevideo City Torque: two contrasting routes to goal
If the tie in Buenos Aires is a clash of mirror images, the one in Belo Horizonte brings together complete opposites. Atlético Mineiro have scored four goals from build-up attacks, at least twice as many as any other team in this edition, and none from direct attacks. Torque are the exact opposite: none from lengthy passing moves and four from direct attacks. The 'Galo' have put together 109 sequences of ten or more passes, compared with 42 for Torque, take short goal kicks averaging 28.4 metres and use long balls for 11.7% of their passes. Marcelo Méndez's side take goal kicks averaging 45.8 metres, play long balls with 23.3% of their passes — the highest percentage among the eight Semifinalists — and progress up the pitch with the ball at 2.0 metres per second, compared with their opponents' 1.2.
Their goals tell the same story in a different way. Atlético have scored 15 goals from 11.2 expected goals, including 12 from open play and three from corners, and have registered 18 headed shots compared with Torque's ten. The 'Ciudadano' have scored 18 goals from just 9.5 expected goals, the biggest positive difference between goals scored and expected goals in this edition. Seven of those goals have come from set-piece situations: two from direct free-kicks, two from free-kick deliveries, one from a penalty, one from a throw-in and one from a corner. They have spent 516 minutes leading, compared with Atlético's 313, and surrender possession when ahead, averaging just 43.1%.
They also differ defensively. Torque have made more clearances (411 to 250) and kept more clean sheets (six to three), but the 'Galo' are stronger in the air, winning 57.4% of their defensive aerial duels compared with 50.0%. Atlético's goalkeepers have made 44 saves, compared with 36 for Franco Torgnascioli, who leads the competition in crosses claimed, with 12. One side wants a patient, possession-based contest; the other prefers a fast, end-to-end game built around crosses and set pieces.
None of these tactical factors will decide a tie on their own. Goals will, and both first legs feature players who know how to find the net: Salomón Rodríguez, the competition's leading scorer with seven goals, and Tomás Cuello, who has scored three times in his last three matches. But the routes to goal, at La Bombonera and Arena MRV, are already clearly defined.
