Liga BetPlay II round 17 preview: Bucaramanga v Nacional and Millonarios v América

This preview covers eight of the ten matches of round 17 of the Liga BetPlay II, those from Saturday 31 October to Tuesday 3 November; Internacional de Bogotá v Once Caldas was played earlier, on 4 October (1–1) and Deportivo Pasto v Jaguares will be played later. It is the third-from-last round of the league phase. The leaders, Atlético Nacional, visit Bucaramanga, sixth, on Monday, and the last match on the list is Millonarios, fifth, against América de Cali, second and a point behind Nacional. Further down, the fight is for eighth place: Independiente Medellín hold it on 23 points, one more than Águilas Doradas and two more than Cúcuta.

Saturday 31 October

Llaneros v Junior (18:00 Bogotá time). At the Bello Horizonte. Llaneros, 14th on 17 points, lost 1–0 to Jaguares in Montería on Monday, with Alejandro Moralez sent off on 82, and have lost four of their last five matches. Junior, 15th on 16, drew 1–1 in Tunja on Tuesday with a goal from J. Rivas on 84 and are unbeaten in five matches, but four of them were draws. El Heraldo considers them out of the race for the cuadrangulares, bar a minimal mathematical chance, and says the future of their coach, Sebastián Viera, is uncertain. L. Muriel has 16 goals. Junior won all three league meetings: 2–0 at home in April 2026, 4–0 at home in August 2025 and 1–0 in Villavicencio in March 2025.

Sunday 1 November

Deportivo Cali v Chicó (16:05 Bogotá time). At the Estadio Deportivo Cali. Deportivo Cali are third on 30 points, have lost only two matches and have the best defence, with ten goals conceded; on Sunday they drew 1–1 with Fortaleza in Bogotá, with a penalty from N. Benedetti on 14. Chicó, 16th on 16, beat Bucaramanga 1–0 with a goal from A. Maya on 64 and drew 1–1 with Junior on Tuesday. Cali have not beaten Chicó in the last five meetings: Chicó won 1–0 at home in April 2026 and in the 2025 Copa Colombia, and there were 0–0 draws in August and in March 2025.

Independiente Medellín v Alianza Valledupar (18:10 Bogotá time). At the Atanasio Girardot. Medellín are eighth on 23 points and have lost four of their last five matches: the clásico 2–1 to Nacional, after leading through A. Simarra's goal on 29, and 3–1 to Internacional in Bogotá on Wednesday. According to El Colombiano, they need points to hold on to eighth place. Their coach, Amaranto Perea, said at a press conference, according to Infobae, that the injured Juan Fernando Quintero will not be back before the finals. Alianza Valledupar, 13th on 18, beat Internacional 1–0 on Sunday and lost 1–0 in Manizales on Wednesday to a penalty from M. Barrios on 52; they have conceded 27 goals, only one fewer than Jaguares. Medellín won 1–0 in Valledupar in April 2026; both meetings in 2025 ended 1–1, and in October 2024 Medellín won 2–0 at home.

Monday 2 November

Águilas Doradas v Fortaleza (16:05 Bogotá time). At the Cincuentenario. Águilas are ninth on 22 points, one behind eighth place, and on Tuesday won 2–0 in Cúcuta with goals from A. Ricaurte on 33 and A. Mosquera, from Ricaurte's pass, on 45. Fortaleza, 19th on 12, have only one win in 16 matches, and nine draws; on Thursday they went ahead in Cali through J. García on 52 but lost 2–1 to América. Fortaleza won 2–0 at home in April 2026; in August 2025 the sides drew 2–2 at Águilas' ground, and in February 2025 Fortaleza won 2–1 at home.

Cúcuta v Santa Fe (18:10 Bogotá time). At the General Santander. Cúcuta, tenth on 21 points, had won three in a row, including 1–0 against Nacional, and then lost two: 3–1 to América in Cali, with Leider Berdugo sent off on 66, and 2–0 at home to Águilas. Santa Fe, fourth on 28, beat Bucaramanga 2–1 on Monday with goals from F. Fagúndez on 31 and L. Palacios on 90, and lost 2–0 to Nacional in Medellín on Thursday. El Tiempo reports that Pablo Repetto left several regular starters out of that match and that James Rodríguez started without standing out. Santa Fe won 5–0 at home in April 2026; before that, in October 2020, they had won 3–2 in Cúcuta.

Bucaramanga v Atlético Nacional (20:15 Bogotá time). At the Américo Montanini, according to El Colombiano. Bucaramanga, sixth on 25 points from 15 matches, play a postponed round 5 match at home to Pasto on Friday; before that they lost their last two, 1–0 in Tunja and 2–1 to Santa Fe in Bogotá, a match they finished with nine men after C. Romana was sent off on 47 and P. Peirano on 87. L. Pons has 13 goals. Nacional lead on 35 points from 16 matches and have won three in a row: 3–0 against Pasto, 2–1 against Medellín and 2–0 against Santa Fe on Thursday, with a goal from E. Cabrera on 24 and an own goal on 28. They are the league's top scorers, with 32 goals, and A. Morelos has 14. Nacional won 2–0 at home in April 2026, but lost their last two league matches in Bucaramanga, 2–0 in March 2025 and 1–0 in September 2024.

Tuesday 3 November

Deportivo Pereira v Deportes Tolima (15:30 Bogotá time). At the Santiago de las Atalayas in Yopal. Deportivo Pereira, 17th on 14 points from 15 matches, play a postponed round 5 match against Jaguares on Friday; on Saturday they drew 1–1 in Manizales with a goal from Y. Quiñones on 90. They have two wins in the tournament and have scored 11 goals. Deportes Tolima, 11th on 20, have lost their last three matches, the latest 1–0 at home to Pasto, and are without a win in five. Tolima won the last two meetings at home, 2–0 in April 2026 and 1–0 in July 2025; in February 2025 the sides drew 0–0 in Pereira.

Millonarios v América de Cali (20:10 Bogotá time). According to El País, the Dimayor has moved it to Wednesday 4 November at 20:30, at El Campín, and El Colombiano's schedule has it the same way. Millonarios, fifth on 26 points, have not played since 20 October, when they drew 1–1 with Once Caldas, and are unbeaten in five matches, four of them draws; they have lost two in the whole tournament. A. Estupiñán has 19 goals. América, second on 34, have won their last two matches: 3–1 against Cúcuta and 2–1 against Fortaleza on Thursday, with goals from Y. Guzmán on 55 and J. Palacios on 63, after going behind. Guzmán has 20 goals, the most in the league. América won 3–1 at home in April 2026; in October 2025 Millonarios won 2–1 at home, and in April 2025 the sides drew 0–0 in Cali.

The table before the round

The top eight go through to the cuadrangulares, and the top two are group seeds. The table does not include this Friday's postponed matches, Pereira v Jaguares and Bucaramanga v Pasto.

1. Atlético Nacional, 35 points (16 matches, +19)
2. América de Cali, 34 (16, +19)
3. Deportivo Cali, 30 (16, +14)
4. Santa Fe, 28 (16, +6)
5. Millonarios, 26 (16, +10)
6. Bucaramanga, 25 (15, +8)
7. Once Caldas, 24 (17, +3)
8. Independiente Medellín, 23 (16, −1)
9. Águilas Doradas, 22 (16, +1)
10. Cúcuta, 21 (16, −6)
11. Deportes Tolima, 20 (16, −1)
12. Internacional de Bogotá, 20 (17, −2)

At the bottom, Pereira (14 points), Jaguares (13), Fortaleza (12) and Pasto (12) occupy the last four places. Relegation is decided by the promedio at the end of the year.

Numbers to know

• Y. Guzmán (América) has 20 goals, one more than A. Estupiñán (Millonarios); D. Moreno (Once Caldas) and L. Muriel (Junior) have 16, and A. Morelos (Nacional) and H. Rodallega (Santa Fe) 14.
• Nacional have scored 32 goals and América 31, the two highest totals.
• Cali have conceded ten goals, the fewest; Jaguares 28, the most.
• Cali, América, Millonarios and Bucaramanga have lost two matches each, the fewest.
• Fortaleza have only one win in 16 matches.

The full table and the kick-off times for the whole round are on the Liga BetPlay page.

Sources for the context: El Tiempo, El Colombiano, El País, El Heraldo, Infobae.