Libertadores back at La Bombonera after Alianza loss, which Boca XI stay | OneFootball

Starting today at 9 p.m., when Boca take on Barcelona of Ecuador, the Copa Libertadores will return to La Bombonera after more than a year away. The last match in this competition at Brandsen 805 dates back to February 25, 2025, when Boca suffered a traumatic elimination on penalties against Alianza Lima.

The defeat to the Peruvian side in a match that had been considered winnable marked a milestone in the Xeneize history books: the earliest elimination ever suffered in South America’s most prestigious club tournament. Even though not that much time has passed, few of the players who took the field that day will do so again in today’s clash against El Ídolo.

Pending confirmation of the starting lineup Boca will send onto the pitch today, Agustín Marchesín would be one of only three players to start both matches. That day, the goalkeeper drew endless criticism for asking then-coach Fernando Gago to substitute him with Leandro Brey for the penalty shootout. Although Brey had much better numbers in that regard and had saved four out of four against Gimnasia in the Copa Argentina a few months earlier, he failed to stop a single shot.

Curiously, none of the starting defenders who featured in the loss to the Peruvian side will do so against the team from Guayaquil, mainly because Luis Advíncula (who in fact switched sides), Marcos Rojo, and Marcelo Saracchi left the club. The only one still wearing blue and gold is Rodrigo Battaglia, but he suffered a very serious ligament injury that will keep him off the pitch for at least another four months.

At that time, Leandro Paredes’ arrival was still just a dream, but Milton Delgado was in midfield and he would also play today’s match. Alongside him were Ander Herrera, now much more firmly established in the team and a regular presence throughout 2026, Kevin Zenón, scorer of the second goal that day, who has lost a lot of ground and was even left out of the squad on several occasions, and Carlos Palacios, another player who required surgery and still has not been medically cleared.

That day’s strike partnership was made up of Miguel Merentiel, another who would feature again despite the pubis discomfort that bothered him over the weekend, and Edinson Cavani, who is currently in the middle of rehabilitation for a herniated disc and is only just beginning fieldwork again.

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