Argentina Superliga round-up week 2: Boca and River make no mistakes and the Maxi Romero show
The international break is (finally) over and we are back to recap all the action in the Superliga this weekend. There were three games on Friday. First of all, Arsenal were beaten 0-1 at home by Colon, goal by Chancalay. That leaves Arsenal with 0 points from their first two games and they will have to improve over the season if they want a chance to stay up. They currently occupy the 26th spot in the relegation table and will need to finish at least in the 24th position to actually avoid relegation.
It was another Maxi Romero show on Friday as Atletico Tucuman were beaten by Velez in Liniers. The youngster scored another brace in a 2-0 victory and now has 4 goals in his first two games. Maxi Romero was subbed off after 60 minutes and deservedly received a standing ovation from the Velez fans. Definitely, one to look out for this season! Independiente were held by Olimpo in a 1-1 draw. Independiente rotated their starting XI slightly ahead of the upcoming Copa Sudamericana clash with Atletico Tucuman. Despite that, they still should have won the game. They would have, if it wasn’t for Olimpo’s goalie Gabbarini. The Argentine goalie had an excellent game for his side from Bahia Blanca. Still a decent start to the season for La Roja, with 4 points from their first two games.
Former GuaranĂ striker Epifanio Garcia proved to be a useful sub as he scored the only goal to give Belgrano a 1-0 victory over San Martin. San Martin probably should have equalized but they will have to return to San Juan without a single point. We move on to our next game where Nelson Vivas returned to La Plata on Saturday night as Defensa y Justicia faced Estudiantes. It actually was a frustrating evening for his former colleagues as DyJ edged past Estudiantes in a 0-1 win. A big victory for DyJ who have started the season well.
Argentinos Jrs. started their Superliga campaign with a loss. The visitors took the lead via Braian Romero but Patronato fought back and managed to turn their 0-1 deficit around. Much needed points for Patronato who will be battling against relegation this season. They currently sit in the 22 place in the relegation table.
Newly signed Uruguayan duo Walter Gargano and Rodrigo Amaral didn’t make it into La Academia’s match squad on Saturday. Despite this, Racing Club still eased past Temperley in a 4-1 victory. Former Atletico Nacional forward Andres Ibarguen got himself on the scoresheet as he scored the last goal of the game. A decent start for Racing who drew their first match of the season away at San Lorenzo.
We move over to Sunday, where multiple games were influenced by heavy rainfall. It wasn’t the prettiest of days in Argentina but Chacarita Juniors made their debut in the Superliga as they hosted Tigre. Tigre had to improve their defensive work this game as they conceded 4 goals last time out against DyJ. They still managed to get a point out of it last weekend and got exactly the same amount of points in this one. Chacarita 1 vs 1 Tigre.
Godoy Cruz were involved in some late drama as Santiago Garcia gave the hosts a 2-1 victory over Talleres in stoppage time. Godoy Cruz were reduced to 10 men shortly before halftime as Fabian Henriquez got himself sent off. It looked like both sides were going to share the points after Talleres equalised in the 83rd minute but a Garcia had other plans. His 94th-minute goal meant that all three points stayed in Mendoza.
San Lorenzo managed to scrape a 0-0 draw in Rosario where they faced Rosario Central. Former Central player Victory Salazar got himself sent off in the 44th minute leaving San Lorenzo with a tough task. Torrico had an excellent game for San Lorenzo and they definitely would have lost points here if it wasn’t for him. El CĂclon will face Lanus in the upcoming week in the Copa Libertadores.
Speaking of Lanus, they faced Boca Juniors this weekend. Not the easiest of games, is it? The game was heavily influenced by heavy rainfall as the pitch drained with water. Some nice passing moves were out of the question and it looked like the game would end in a stalemate. Until the 84th minute, where Boca scored a winner. Leonardo Jara did some nice work on the flank and whipped in a cross which was beautifully controlled and scored by Dario Benedetto. That’s now 29 goals in his last 33 appearances. Not too shabby eh?
River hosted Banfield in the Monumental on Sunday. The visitors brutally took the lead early on as Civelli headed in a free kick. However, River Plate were able to turn their 0-1 deficit around and won comfortably in the end. 3-1. Uruguayan youngsters Nicolas de La Cruz and Saracchi both made their debut for River Plate. The former played very well and will be a fan favourite in no-time, just like his brother was for River Plate. The game could have ended in a much higher scoreline as both teams wasted plenty of chances.
The final two Superliga games were played on Monday. Union de Santa Fe hosted Gimnasia in Santa Fe and the hosts edged past Gimnasia in a 1-0 victory. Another positive result for Union who currently sit in the 8th position. Newell’s were looking for an improved result over last week’s draw with Union. It wasn’t going to be an easy game though, as they were facing Huracan away from home. Huracan took the lead on the stroke of halftime and managed to hold on. A narrow 1-0 victory for the hosts in the Estadio Tomás Adolfo Duco.