The Rio side need to win tonight to avoid a crisis at the club.
On Wednesday night, the Botafogo players will face Deportivo Quito at the Maracanã knowing that they have an enormous responsibility. With thousands in the stadium and millions more watching on television, the team are expected to get the result needed to put them into the group stages of South America’s most prestigious club competition – the Copa Libertadores.
It will not be an easy task. Botafogo lost 1-0 in the first leg and the team managed by Eduardo Hungaro will need to win by at least two goals to ensure qualification. In the case of a 1-0 victory for the Alvinegro, the decision will go down to penalties. Any other result and it’s the Ecuadorian side that will advance in the competition.
Elimination would leave the club with real problems. Already experiencing a financial crisis, extra revenue from a Libertadores campaign is essential. Moreover, if the club fail to qualify then the management will have to live with the dissatisfaction of the supporters, already unhappy with the team’s poor showing in the state championships so far this year.
Hungaro is expected to name an unchanged team to the side that lost the first leg.
