Carlos Palacios could be called up by Boca for the first time this year | OneFootball

The Chilean took part in Monday’s football practice and has a strong chance of being included in the squad for the match against Universidad Católica in the Copa Libertadores.

Ahead of next Thursday’s match at 9:30 p.m. against Universidad Católica in the final round of the Copa Libertadores group stage, Carlos Palacios has a serious chance of being called up for the first time this year. The Chilean has already put the synovitis in his right knee behind him, took part in Monday’s football practice, and Claudio Úbeda could include him in the squad.

Palacios has not played a single minute in 2026. At the start of preseason, synovitis in his right knee kept him from taking part in the friendlies or the opening of the Torneo Apertura. At the end of February, he agreed to undergo surgery with the club’s medical staff. After the operation, which required two months of recovery, all that remained was to get back up to match fitness, since his last official match had been on December 7 of last year against Racing in the Torneo Apertura semifinal.

He has been training alongside his teammates for several weeks now and came close to being included in the squad for last Tuesday’s draw against Cruzeiro; however, Úbeda’s coaching staff decided to give him one more week.

This Monday, the squad held a football session at La Bombonera. Úbeda began shaping the starting eleven for the clash against Universidad Católica, which would feature three changes from the team that drew against the Brazilians: Marco Pellegrino would come in for the suspended Ayrton Costa; Exequiel Zeballos would take the place of the injured Miguel Merentiel; while Ander Herrera would replace Tomás Belmonte.

In practice, both Palacios and Cavani played for the backup team. The Chilean was able to complete the session without major issues, but the Uruguayan had to leave after 15 minutes due to lower back pain. Unlike the former Colo-Colo player, El Matador is more likely to be left out of the squad.

Although he has a chance of being on the bench, it is unlikely he will get any minutes given what is at stake for Boca this Thursday. Xeneize must win if they want to stay alive in the Copa Libertadores.

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