Buenos Aires, April 14 (NA) – Racing will host Botafogo of Brazil this Wednesday for the second matchday of Group E of the Copa Sudamericana, in a crucial clash that could be key to the future of their head coach Gustavo Costas. The match, starting at 19:00, will take place at the Presidente Perón Stadium, better known as the 'Cylinder of Avellaneda', and will be covered live by Agencia Noticias Argentina and broadcast on DSports. The referee will be Chilean Cristian Garay, with his compatriot Rodrigo Carvajal in charge of the VAR. Racing arrives at this match in a very poor moment. Despite winning their Sudamericana debut 3-1 against Independiente Petrolero of Bolivia, they suffered heavy defeats in the classics against Independiente and River in the Apertura tournament, causing great dissatisfaction among their fans. The 'Academy', which in recent years had been used to fighting on several fronts, is ninth in Zone B of the Apertura and with only three matchdays left, would not qualify for the playoffs. This is why another blow, this time in the Copa Sudamericana, could begin to cast doubts about the continuity of their head coach, Gustavo Costas. Botafogo, for its part, debuted in the competition with a disappointing draw at home against Caracas of Venezuela. To make matters worse, the team led by Portuguese Franclim Carvalho had a weak start in the Brasileirao, where they are eleventh. This encounter will be a re-match of the 2025 South American Recopa, in which Racing crushed Botafogo with a convincing 4-0 aggregate score, thanks to 2-0 victories in both legs. Possible lineups and other match details. Copa Sudamericana. Group E - matchday 2. Racing (Arg) - Botafogo (Bra). Stadium: Presidente Perón (Cylinder of Avellaneda). Referee: Cristian Garay. VAR: Rodrigo Carvajal. Time: 19. TV: DSports. Racing: Facundo Cambeses; Ezequiel Cannavo, Marco Di Césare, Nazareno Colombo, Agustín García Basso; Baltasar Rodríguez, Santiago Sosa, Adrián Fernández; Santiago Solari, Adrián Martínez and Tomás Conechny. Coach: Gustavo Costas. Botafogo: Raul Steffens; Vitinho, Bastos, Alexander Barboza, Caio Roque; Allan, Danilo, Santiago Rodríguez; Álvaro Montoro, Matheus Martins and Júnior Santos. Coach: Franclim Carvalho.
