The return leg of the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League Round of 16 has arrived, and with it, there will be eight successful teams who will keep their dreams of glory alive.
The games held last week had some interesting results, with Olimpia defeating Liga MX champions Atlas, or with Alajuelense being slammed around by the LAFC, who claimed a three-nil win in Costa Rica. While most ties will be decided in the final moments, there will be other teams such as the Vancouver Whitecaps who could kick back after a successful outing seven days ago.
Just like last week, the tournament will have three games on Tuesday and Wednesday. Lastly, there will be two more matches being held on Thursday, when the identities of the Quarterfinalists will be known to all.
Here's a glimpse on what to expect in some of the toughest ties to predict.
2023 CONCACAF Champions League - Top games to watch
Philadelphia Union vs Alianza - The Union made it through their trip to El Salvador unscathed, and now all they need to do is to beat Alianza to reach the next stage. Contrary to other tournaments in the world, away goals still count in this competition, which means that any draw with Alianza scoring would give them the edge over their American counterpart. The only way for this tie to be sorted out in a penalty shootout would come if the game ends in a goalless draw, so you may want to bet on a high-scoring game between these teams (Click on the match for further broadcast info).
Orlando City vs Tigres UANL - The team from Florida limited Tigres to a goalless draw at their own stadium, which will see the blue and gold trying to score a goal at all costs. Nonetheless, the Liga MX side will have to face this match without their all-time top scorer, as André-Pierre Gignac will be unavailable due to his COVID-19 vaccination status, which will leave a huge gap to fill for coach Marco Antonio Ruiz.
Orlando City will try to become the third MLS team to eliminate Tigres from a CONCACAF CL edition, following the path set by the Seattle Sounders in 2013 and by Toronto FC in 2018. Neither of those teams won the title in those years, but the first order of duty for the home team will be to try and eliminate a tough Liga MX opponent on Wednesday night (Click on the match for further broadcast info).
Pachuca vs Motagua - The defending Liga MX champions claimed a goalless draw in their turbulent trip to Honduras, and with their current form in the domestic competition, it seems that Pachuca's best chance for silverware this semester will come in this tournament. As for Motagua, the Hondurans have never been able to score a goal against Los Tuzos, which will be imperative if they want to make it to the next round this time, just like they did back in 2018, when they eliminated Tijuana from the competition by scoring an away goal on Mexican soil (Click on the match for further broadcast info).
