Electric atmosphere awaits as Olimpia face Atlas in showdown | OneFootball

MIAMI, Florida – It should be an electric atmosphere on Wednesday night at the Estadio Olimpico Metropolitano in San Pedro Sula, Honduras when Olimpia face Atlas of Liga MX in the first leg of the 2023 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League.

While Atlas will be making their debut in the tournament, Olimpia will be making a record 13th appearance in the SCCL and their first since the 2021 edition.

Olimpia emerged as champions of the 2022 Scotiabank Concacaf League and will now set their sights on another Concacaf crown. Heading up that effort is Head Coach Pedro Troglio, who guided the Honduran side to their best SCCL finish ever in 2020 when they reached the semifinals.

In their history, Olimpia have three wins in 12 games against Liga MX opponents in the SCCL era and will be turning to stalwarts like Yustin Arboleda, Jerry Bengtson and Edrick Menjivar to find a fourth triumph.

Arboleda has three SCCL Round of 16 goals to his name, while Bengtson has four career SCCL goals in 15 games. Meanwhile, GK Menjivar was a rock in goal during their title-winning run in the 2022 SCL, with 38 saves.

In front of their boisterous home fans in the SCCL era, Olimpia have a record of 13W-6D-5L, making it a tough task for an Atlas side making its maiden voyage in Concacaf.

The 2021 Apertura and 2022 Clausura winners might have never played an SCCL match, but there are plenty of players with Concacaf experience on the squad.

Julio Cesar Furch scored five goals in six SCCL games with Santos Laguna in 2019, Julian Quinones had three goals in 11 SCCL games with Tigres, including their title win in 2020, while Brian Lozano was also an SCCL champion with Club America in 2015-16 prior to scoring two goals in seven SCCL matches with Santos Laguna in 2019 and 2022.