Newell’s vs Estudiantes
Newell’s Old Boys’ crisis seems to have no end. Last Saturday, they added another disappointment to their collection, falling 3-0 to Banfield — a direct rival in the battle to remain in the top flight — and the defeat could have been even heavier. La Lepra have collected just two points in the Torneo Apertura, leaving them in the relegation zone of the overall table and increasingly closer to the bottom of the averages standings. As a result, the managerial duo of Sergio Gómez and Favio Orsi left the club. While their performance was poor, it must be said that the slump had been coming for some time: Newell’s have won only one of their last 14 league matches — drawing four and losing nine — and they have not won at home in six, with three draws and three defeats. Lucas Bernardi will take over as interim boss on Wednesday. Matías Cóccaro continues to recover from his muscle injury. The new man in charge will introduce eight changes in the XI.
Estudiantes did not show their best version last Friday, but they still managed to secure a very valuable 1–0 home victory over Sarmiento at home thanks to a goal by Alexis Castro early in the second half, in a match that also marked the farewell of their head coach Eduardo Domínguez. El Pincha reached 12 points in the Torneo Apertura and climbed to second place in Group A, two behind leaders Vélez Sarsfield. In fact, they extended their unbeaten run to ten league matches, with six wins and four draws in regular time. Away from home, Estudiantes have not lost in six, recording three victories and three draws. Cristian Medina was sold to Botafogo FR, and José Sosa suffered a muscle injury, so he will not be available on Wednesday, as well as Guido Carrillo. New coach Alexander Medina will make his debut on Wednesday following Eduardo Domínguez’s departure.
Newell’s are a disaster, they will have an interim coach that will make a lot of changes before the derby they have next weekend against Rosario Central. Estudiantes also with a new coach, but they should be able to take advantage of the worst defense in the league, so I like the chances of having at least two goals considering Newell’s needs points desperately and should take risks.