There is no getting away from the fact that Brazilian clubs have dominated South American football in recent years. The last time the winners of the CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores came from anywhere other than Brazil was 2018. Since then, the trophy has only been lifted by Flamengo (twice), Palmeiras (twice), Fluminense and Botafogo.
Palmeiras and Flamengo have once again made it to the semi-finals of this year’s competition, where they will meet Ecuador’s LDU Quito and Argentina’s Racing, respectively. LDU, however, have a Brazilian weapon at their disposal in Tiago Nunes.
South American coaches are spread throughout world football; Argentinian coaches, for example, can be found all over Europe. And while Brazil is known to be a prolific exporter of players, the same cannot be said for coaches, aside from exceptions like Luiz Felipe Scolari, Paulo Autuori, Sylvinho and Andre Jardine.
With this in mind, long before taking his LDU Quito side to the semi-finals of this year’s Copa Libertadores, Tiago Nunes decided to challenge himself by leaving his comfort zone.
“I wanted to take a leap of faith and take in some new experiences”, he told FIFA. “If I want to coach around the world, I need to make a name for myself on my own continent first. Then, who knows, maybe one day I can cross the Atlantic [to clubs in Europe].”
“If I ever get to the point where I’m an example to other Brazilians, then great, but I’ve never done anything just to inspire others. I’ve always tried to win my own battles; I come from a small city, I haven’t played professional football, I burst that bubble and managed to get to this level. I try to win those battles on a daily basis to prove that it is possible”, he added.
And Nunes has been winning those battles for a number of years now. Although he only arrived in Ecuador in June, his journey outside of Brazil began in 2022 when he took over at Peruvian club Sporting Cristal. Three years on, he has seen off two Brazilian giants in the knock-out stages of the 2025 Copa Libertadores, with LDU beating Botafogo in the last 16 and Sao Paulo in the quarter-finals. His side also topped Group C before that, finishing above Flamengo.
That is no mean feat, and LDU will be looking to floor another Brazilian heavyweight in the club’s first Libertadores semi-final for 17 years. Palmeiras have enjoyed a lot of success in recent years, both in Brazil and on the continent, and they are sure to provide a stern test for Nunes and his players. To put it into context, the Verdao are preparing for their fifth Libertadores semi-final in six years – all overseen by Portuguese coach Abel Ferreira.
As he prepares his team for the two-legged tie (to be played on 23 and 30 October), Nunes knows that the side will need to be very strong mentally if they are to compete with Palmeiras. The winner after two legs will progress to the final, where they will play either Flamengo or Racing, and there is the added incentive of the winner of this season’s Libertadores qualifying for the FIFA Intercontinental Cup 2025™ and the FIFA Club World Cup 2029™.
“Palmeiras are very strong as a whole, that’s nothing new. They’ve been the most stable and competitive club in South America over the past four or five years. Mentality is going to be the most important factor. We want to win and be in that final, and we have ways in which we can hurt them”, the coach said.
“It’s going to be a tough ask because they’re hard to beat. But, equally, Palmeiras are a football team playing a match, and there are a lot of variables that go into that. Those variables are things that only football can provide; it’s still a game of 11 against 11, at the end of the day.”
After his side knocked out Sao Paulo in the quarter-finals, Nunes used a powerful phrase to summarise their win: “Money can’t buy heart or dreams”. The LDU head coach feels that his players have a lot of belief and determination.
“History gives us plenty of examples of teams and people who defied the odds and smashed through barriers. It doesn’t always happen, but football is more than a game of odds. Our squad is like a family, and that’s what has seen us get to where we’re at in the competition. I don’t know whether that will be enough to get past Palmeiras, but nobody will stop us from dreaming”, he said.
Tiago Nunes reiterated that the Ecuadorian club cannot be underestimated – and more to the point, the team cannot underestimate themselves. LDU – Libertadores winners in 2008 – have had a spectacular journey so far in this year’s competition. “We need to understand who we are”, Nunes explained.
At this point in the interview, Nunes pointed to the LDU badge on his shirt and, more specifically, the stars that represent the club’s five continental triumphs (one Libertadores, two CONMEBOL Sudamericanas and two CONMEBOL Recopas). The club are referred to as the Rey de Copas (King of Cups) domestically, and Nunes elaborated on this: “We never underestimate an opponent, and we certainly don’t fear any.”
“Coming to a club of this size, you can’t settle for anything less than continuing to compete for trophies. The only things [the club] hasn’t won are the Intercontinental Cup and the Club World Cup; in terms of everything else, we’ve won it all, so it’s nothing new”, he explained.
Touching on the Intercontinental Cup and the Club World Cup, Nunes admitted that seeing LDU competing at a FIFA tournament would be a dream come true. That said, he made it clear that he is not thinking about that for the time being, instead choosing to focus on the tough tests ahead in their pursuit of Libertadores glory. He, understandably, would rather not put himself under that kind of unnecessary pressure.
“The dream is always there, of course. We always dream of playing in the biggest competitions in the world, but I’m not focusing on that right now because I don’t think it would be wise.
“I’d rather take each day as it comes and try to be the best version of myself while enjoying football. Coaches spend so much of their time just trying to survive that it becomes more relief than joy. Sometimes you need to enjoy football and enjoy the moment.”
