Fluminense beat Palmeiras in their first-ever Copa Libertadores match | OneFootball

Fluminense will face Palmeiras in the semifinals of the 2026 Copa Libertadores after eliminating Platense and seeing their rivals knock out LDU. This will be the third time the clubs have met in the competition. On 01/29/1971, the Tricolor beat the São Paulo side 2-0 at the Pacaembu in the match that marked the team’s debut in the history of the competition.

Photo: Reproduction / Jornal dos Sports

Managed by Zagallo, Fluminense relied on two first-half goals from Flávio to secure the win. That year, the Tricolor, the reigning Brazilian champions, and Palmeiras, the reigning Brazilian runners-up, were drawn in the same group along with Galícia and Deportivo Italia, the two Venezuelan teams. Under the competition’s format that year, only the group leader advanced to the semifinals.

Fluminense lineup: Félix (Jorge Vitório); Oliveira, Galhardo, Assis and Toninho; Denílson, Didi and Samarone; Cafuringa, Flávio (Mickey) and Lula. Coach: Zagallo

After the win over their São Paulo rivals, the Tricolor ended up losing to Deportivo Italia and Palmeiras at the Maracanã in the final two rounds, and saw Palmeiras take over the top spot in the group and qualify for the semifinals with 10 points, while the Tricolor finished the group with 8.

Fluminense and Palmeiras will meet again in the Copa Libertadores 55 years later with a place in the final at stake. The matches have not yet had their dates officially confirmed by CONMEBOL, but they will take place in the weeks of 10/13 (first leg at the Maracanã) and 10/20 (second leg at Nubank Parque).

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.