Argentine Superliga round-up week 11: Tucumán end Colon’s unbeaten season and Boca get back to winning ways
Friday
Union de Santa Fe drew 1-1 with Belgrano in the opening game of Fecha 11. Belgrano are doing much better than last year and sit just outside the Copa Sudamericana spots. Union are still flying high in 3rd.
Defensa y Justicia beat Godoy Cruz in an absolute goal thriller. On fire striker, Nicolas Fernandez (21) scored a brace for the hosts to give them a comfortable lead. Two quick goals just after the 70th minute from Godoy Cruz brought the scoreline back level but an own goal from Abecasis later on gifted all three points to the hosts.
Huracan shared the points in a somewhat disappointing game with Patronato. Huracan were coming into this game on fire but weren’t able to get passed lower-ranked Patronato. 1-1.
Saturday
Sotelo Sanchez opened the scoring between Argentinos Jrs. and Temperley from the halfway line, a goal definitely worth looking up. It ended all square at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium though. Argentinos Jrs 2 vs 2 Temperley. The hosts must be upset they didn’t take all three points while Temperley desperately need as many points as they can get to avoid relegation.
Olimpo picked up a huge win vs Characita in an early relegation battle. A 2-0 victory for Olimpo leaves Chacarita with only 6 points from their first 11 games. They’ve only picked up 0.545 points on average per game, a worrying number. They are dead last in the relegation table at the moment.
Newell’s were a bit unlucky against Racing Club but both sides shared the points. A rather exciting game which ended 2-2. Lautaro Martinez back on the scoresheet again with a well-timed header. The youngster has been heavily linked with Atletico Madrid and reports stated the deal was supposedly done.
Sunday
San Lorenzo continued their great form with a 1-2 victory away at Tigre. El Ciclon are currently tied up top with Boca although Boca do have a game in hand. Chilean defender Paulo Diaz opened the scoring, it was his second of the season.
Estudiantes edged Talleres in a narrow 0-1 victory. The visitors had their GK Andujar to thank as he saved a penalty to keep the La Plata side in the lead. Estudiantes are back in the Copa Sudamericana spots, Talleres sit in 6th.
Boca Juniors got back to winning ways under the guidance of Edwin Cardona. The Colombian midfielder scored and assisted once in a 2-0 victory over Arsenal. Boca lost their last two games prior to this weekend’s game but are now back on top of the Superliga.
Gimnasia L.P faced River Plate on Sunday evening. An important game for River but again, just like last week, a disappointing result for Los Millonarios. The game was still tied at 1-1 coming into injury time but Brahian Aleman secured all three points for Gimnasia in the 92nd minute. River are currently in 15th (!) position having won just one out of their last 6 Superliga games. Only the Copa Argentina can save their season.
Monday
Jorge Almiron left Lanus after their 0-0 draw with Velez on Monday. A disappointing end to Jorge Almiron’s stint with Lanus as they lost the Copa Libertadores final to Gremio. However, he’s a great manager and should do well with his next club.
Atletico Tucuman ended Colon’s unbeaten season with a 2-0 victory. Club Icon La Pulga Rodriguez opened the scoring with a classy finish and Acosta secured the victory in injury time. Atletico Tucuman will be on high morale coming into the Copa Argentina final against River now.
San Martin continued their good start to the season with a 2-1 victory over Banfield. Banfield had some important players missing including club top scorer Dario Cvitanich but will be disappointed with this result nonetheless.
| Team | MP | W | D | L | P | Avg P. | |
| 1 | Boca Juniors | 11 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 27 | 2.000 |
| 2 | San Lorenzo | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 27 | 1.989 |
| 3 | Union de Santa Fe | 12 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 22 | 1.330 |
| 4 | Huracan | 11 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 21 | 1.207 |
| 5 | Colon Santa Fe | 11 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 20 | 1.379 |
| 6 | Talleres de Cordoba | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 18 | 1.463 |
| 7 | Independiente | 10 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 18 | 1.767 |
| 8 | Defensa y Justicia | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 18 | 1.425 |
| 9 | San Martin | 11 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 17 | 1.264 |
| 10 | Estudiantes L.P | 11 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 17 | 1.793 |
| 11 | Godoy Cruz | 11 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 17 | 1.437 |
| 12 | Belgrano | 11 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 17 | 1.264 |
| 13 | Atletico Tucuman | 12 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 16 | 1.362 |
| 14 | Banfield | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 15 | 1.540 |
| 15 | River Plate | 12 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 15 | 1.568 |
| 16 | Argentinos Jrs. | 11 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 1.273 |
| 17 | Velez Sarsfield | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 14 | 1.182 |
| 18 | Newell’s Old Boys | 11 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 1.356 |
| 19 | Racing Club | 11 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 1.713 |
| 20 | Gimnasia L.P | 11 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 13 | 1.437 |
| 21 | Lanus | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 1.663 |
| 22 | Patronato | 11 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 12 | 1.158 |
| 23 | Rosario Central | 10 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 1.547 |
| 24 | Olimpo Bahia Blanca | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 1.103 |
| 25 | Temperley | 11 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 1.057 |
| 26 | Tigre | 11 | 1 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 1.182 |
| 27 | Chacarita Jrs. | 11 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 0.545 |
| 28 | Arsenal Sarandi | 11 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 5 | 0.989 |
Relegation in Argentina is decided via an average point table. All points from the last three seasons get divided by the amount of games which gives us a completely different ranking. The average points from teams like Chacarita and Argentinos Jrs, who have just been promoted, only take this year’s games into account. The teams that would go down if the league ended today are Chacarita, Arsenal, Olimpo and Temperley.
News
A new part to these round-ups: I’ll catch you up on the latest transfers, sackings and other important news from last week.
- Bundesliga side Stuttgart have signed highly-rated striker Maxi Romero (18) from Velez Sarsfield for a 10M fee. An absolute bargain this, Maxi has shown great potential and should do well in Europe once he’s adapted to his new country.
- Atlanta United have reportedly signed Ezequiel Barco from Independiente. Another big and somewhat unexpected transfer! Ezequiel Barco has been a vital part of Independiente’s success this season and the deal should be finalised after the Copa Sudamericana final. He’ll team up with Asad, Villalba, Almiron and Josef Martinez.
- Mauricio Larriera has resigned as Godoy Cruz manager following their 3-2 defeat to Defensa y Justicia.
- Named above but Jorge Almiron has left Lanus. He’s likely to take over the vacant Las Palmas job.
- Nestor Gorosita will leave San Martin as their head coach after next week’s game as he couldn’t reach an agreement with San Martin to renew his contract.
- Walter Coyette has also resigned as manager of Chacarita. The newly promoted club had only picked up 6 points so far.
- Now that will be 12 managers gone after only 12 weeks of the Superliga.