Grêmio vs Montevideo City Torque Preview: High-Stakes Copa Sudamericana Group F Decider

Grêmio host Montevideo City Torque at Arena do Grêmio on 26 May 2026 in the final Group F matchday of the Copa Sudamericana and the stakes are about as clear as they get. Grêmio sit second with 10 points from a 3-1-1 record while Torque lead on 12 from a 4-0-1 campaign, meaning a Grêmio win takes top spot and the better knockout seeding that comes with it, whereas anything else hands Torque first place. The first leg went 1-0 to Torque at Estadio Centenario, so the home side need to overturn that deficit while managing a domestic season that has them edging toward the Série A relegation zone.

Luís Castro and Marcelo Méndez have never faced each other as managers. Castro joined Grêmio in December 2025 with a brief to build a possession based, defensively structured side along Portuguese lines, though results have been inconsistent, Méndez has been at Torque for several seasons running compact, transition heavy football suited to the Uruguayan game. Castro wants to control the ball and the tempo while Méndez will look to sit deep.

Grêmio are not coming into this in good shape, having drawn 1-1 with Bahia before beating Confiança in the Copa do Brasil and then losing 1-0 to Flamengo, leaving them fighting relegation in the league while trying to hold things together on the continent. Torque arrive in better nick: their narrow first leg win was part of a run of strong group stage results, while their domestic form has them sitting comfortably in the upper mid table of the Uruguayan Primera División.

Grêmio's squad is badly stretched. Mathias Villasanti is out with a knee problem, Marlon absent with an ankle injury and Gustavo Martins still recovering from a leg issue, while Fabián Balbuena, Juan Nardoni, Gabriel Grando, Roger Dias Fernandes and João Pedro are also unavailable. Torque have no injuries of note and Méndez can field close to his strongest side. Grêmio are likely to start Weverton in goal behind a back four of Pavon, Eduardo, Viery and Paulista, with Perez and Arthur in central midfield and Enamorado, Braithwaite, Amuzu and Vinicius ahead of them, Torque should line up with Torgnascioli in goal, a back four of Silvera, Kagelmacher, Romero and Aguero, Siles, Montes and Pizzichillo in the middle and Obregón, Rodríguez and Lecchini up front.

The absences reshape Grêmio's options considerably in the middle of the park. Braithwaite will need to hold play up centrally while Torque, disciplined and compact out of possession, rely on Siles and Montes to protect Kagelmacher and Romero at the back. The key contest is in midfield: if Grêmio's central players can slow Torque's transitions the home side have a real chance but if not they will be exposed to the same counter attacking approach that produced Torque's winner in Montevideo and Torque have already shown in this tie that they can absorb pressure and score. The only prior competitive meeting between these sides is that first leg, which Torque won 1-0, so there is nothing from previous seasons to draw on.

Grêmio will lean on dead ball situations as an additional route to goal and with the home side likely to overcommit in search of a second, Torque could well be punished on the counter or at corners themselves. The broader picture for each club tells its own story: Grêmio are juggling Série A survival alongside continental progress on a squad that is clearly too thin for both, whereas Torque have the domestic stability to commit fully to this competition and treat it as an opportunity to reach the knockout rounds as group winners.

A 1-1 draw is the likeliest outcome. Grêmio have home advantage but the injury list across midfield and defence limits how much they can actually impose themselves and Torque have already shown in this tie that they can score away from home when they defend deep and break. A draw gives Torque first place and keeps Grêmio's continental campaign alive.