Copa Libertadores preview, Week 2: Welcome Cruzeiro and Estudiantes to the party

Copa Libertadores produced the requisite amount of silly upsets, red cards and wondergoals in the first week of play, though the second doesn’t look to be quite as wild. There are fewer games period, fewer in Bolivia, and we’re not likely to see games with five sendings off on a weekly basis.

Still, there’s plenty to get excited about. Cruzeiro and Estudiantes La Plata have both won the tournament multiple times and make their 2015 Copa Lib debuts after being off last week. Cruzeiro are big favorites to win a relatively weak group, while Estudiantes are facing some solid competition in theirs.

A lot of big sides dug holes for themselves with losses last week and need to bounce back quickly to get their tournament back on track. Atlas, Atlético Mineiro, São Paulo, Universidad de Chile and Internacional were all thought of as contenders for a deep run coming into the tournament, but they all lost their openers last week. They’re back in action, while fellow favorites/losers River Plate sit it out.

Cruzeiro are coming into the Libertadores on the back of an impressive Brasileirão victory. They should be one of the favorites to win the tournament, but they’re a bit untested at the moment and dealing with injuries. The Minas Gerais state championship isn’t quite as demanding as the Cariocão or Paulistão, so they enter this tournament more rusty than they would have if they were a São Paulo or Rio-based side. They’re also without injured defenders Dede, Alex and Mayke.

However, Cruzeiro’s new signings are playing well. Leandro Damaio is scoring goals after a poor season at Santos, while Giorgian Di Arrascaeta and Eugenio Mena have given them some more quality in attack and on the wing. As long as their defense holds up, they’ll be formidable. Going away to Universitario will be tough, though -- like other Bolivian sides, their stadium is at a very high altitude.

Estudiantes aren’t quite as strong as Boca or River, but they’ve got two wins from two games in the Argentine Primera and beat Independiente del Valle 4-1 on aggregate to get here, so there’s plenty of reason to believe that they can make a deep run. Their best asset is probably their midfield depth -- the starting pair of Israel Damonte and Leonardo Gil have done well with veteran Ramon Martinez out and young starlet Gaston Gil Romero relegated to the bench to start the season.

They should win their opener, at home against Barcelona. The Ecuadorian side has been a bit shaky to start the season domestically, taking just five points from their first four games.

Every year, a team that no one was expecting to contend emerges and makes a deep run in Copa Libertadores. After last week’s performance, it looks like that could be Emelec. They outplayed Universidad de Chile at their own ground for the entirety of their match and deserved much more than the 1-0 win they got.

With La U and Internacional both on zero points, they can establish themselves as firm favorites in Group 4 with a home win against The Strongest. John Narvaez and Fernando Gimenez will be suspended for picking up second yellows late in last week’s game, but Emelec should be able to win without them. And with six points from two games, their competition will be desperate in their last four games.

If you’re trying to watch these teams this week, you’re shoot out of luck:

Group 2

Corinthians
San Lorenzo

Group 6

UANL Tigres
San Jose
River Plate
Juan Aurich

Group 7

Atlético Nacional
Libertad

Here’s what you should be watching on each day, besides the aforementioned matches.

Racing Club vs. Guarani - To be honest, it’s slim pickings on Tuesday, by far the worst of the three days this week. But Racing were extremely impressive in a 5-0 win against Deportivo Tachira last week, so they might be worth watching from here on out. Guarani should be a slightly more formidable opponent.

Atlético Mineiro vs. Atlas - Coming into the tournament, many guessed these teams would finish top two in Group 1, but they’re both in serious trouble after opening round losses. Atlas’ came at home, so they’re in a desperate situation, in need of a good performance after a very long flight to Brazil. If either team loses this game, they can consider themselves all but out already.

Internacional vs. Universidad de Chile - Like Wednesday’s highlighted game, this is a matchup between two big names that lost their opening game. Internacional’s was understandable -- at altitude away to The Strongest -- but La U’s was especially disappointing. They were outclassed at home against Emelec and they’ll need to pick up the pace in Brazil. They finally showed signs of life domestically over the weekend, snapping a five-game winless streak.

Huracán vs. Mineros - Tuesday, 5 p.m.
Racing Club vs. Guarani - Tuesday, 7:15 p.m.
Emelec vs. The Strongest - Tuesday, 9:30 p.m., FOX Deportes
Sporting Cristal vs. Deportivo Tachira - Tuesday, 9:30 p.m.
Atlético Mineiro vs. Atlas - Wednesday, 5:45 p.m., FOX Deportes
Estudiantes La Plata vs. Barcelona - Wednesday, 5:45 p.m.
Club Universitario vs. Cruzeiro - Wednesday, 8 p.m.
São Paulo vs. Danubio - Wednesday, 8 p.m.
Internacional vs. Universidad de Chile - Thursday, 6:15 p.m.
Boca Juniors vs. Wanderers - Thursday, 6:15 p.m., FOX Deportes
Independiente Santa Fe vs. Colo-Colo - Thursday, 8:30 p.m., FOX Deportes
Zamora vs. Palestino - Thursday, 8:30 p.m.