Last week we brought here the preview of the Copa Libertadores final. We also brought here our picks for this game. And with a winner prediction from ThePicks, Fluminense beat Boca Juniors 2-1 in overtime to win the Libertadores for the first time ever. With that, they were able to avoid a penalty shootout, which Boca is known for having a great advantage.
From the first minute of the game, the intentions of both teams were clear. Fluminense, playing “at home” (it is a previously defined neutral stadium, but after Maracanã is Fluminense’s home), has chased victory since minute one. Fernando Diniz, Fluminense and Brazil coach, put his aggressive style into practice also in the final.
On the other side, Boca Juniors clearly wanted to go to penalties. Why? Because they are great at it. They made it to the final without winning a single game in the knockout stage. They tied every match and advanced on penalties in every single one. And they did it. Well, at least in 90 minutes.
During the round of 16, quarter-finals and semi-finals, a tied game goes directly to penalty shootouts. In the final, however, we have the overtime first. And that was decisive. After Germán Cano scored for Fluminense in the first half, Boca tied the game with Luis Advincula. And the game was over with a 1-1 draw. Unfortunately, for Boca, Fluminense is a better team and scored their second goal in overtime, and that was game!
Libertadores champions
Fluminense 2-1 Boca Juniors was the final result and Fluminense won their first Libertadores ever. Boca, on the other side, lost the chance to become the biggest winner of the tournament, with seven. They are still with six trophies, while Independiente, also from Argentina, are the greatest winners, with seven titles.
Boca Jrs. Won their sixth trophy in 2007. Since then, they made it to three finals, having the chance to tie with Independiente. They lost all three. In 2012 Corinthians beat them. In 2018, their biggest rivals, River Plate, won the trophy. And now, in 2023, Fluminense. See below a chart with the biggest winners of the greatest South American continental tournament.
| Team | Number of trophies | Number of finals played | Years |
| Independiente (ARG) | 7 | 7 | 1964, 1965, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1984 |
| Boca Juniors (ARG) | 6 | 12 | 1977, 1978, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2007 |
| Peñarol (URU) | 5 | 10 | 1960, 1961, 1966, 1982, 1987 |
| River Plate (ARG) | 4 | 7 | 1986, 1996, 2015, 2018 |
| Estudiantes (ARG) | 4 | 5 | 1968, 1969, 1970, 2009 |
| Palmeiras (BRA) | 3 | 6 | 1999, 2020, 2021 |
| Flamengo (BRA) | 3 | 4 | 1981, 2019, 2022 |
| Grêmio (BRA) | 3 | 5 | 1983, 1995, 2017 |
| Santos (BRA) | 3 | 5 | 1962, 1963, 2011 |
| São Paulo (BRA) | 3 | 6 | 1992, 1993, 2005 |
| Nacional (URU) | 3 | 6 | 1971, 1980, 1988 |
| Olimpia (PAR) | 3 | 7 | 1979, 1990, 2002 |
Bets
Closing this article, we have a quick recap of our predictions for this game. First of all, our main pick for this game was a winner. We recommended going with the under 9.5 corners. The game, in 90 minutes, had only four. In the overtime, however, Boca had six more corners, totalling 10 in the game. But corner bets are only for 90 minutes, not including the overtime.
The other two higher odds predictions were also good. Germán Cano to score anytime was a winner since he scored the first goal of the game. Fluminense to win the game was a loser since the 90 minutes ended tied 1-1. But it was a close call, and the fact that Fluminense lifted the trophy proves that it was not a bad choice.
