2020 Copa Libertadores / 2020 Copa Sudamericana

[EIM]

Sat watching Boca v Racing Club after an evening of Edinson Cavani and takeaway curry from Rajdoot, the best place in town. I got half cut watching the sexy square-jawed goal cowboy pummelling Everton, then had to assemble an IKEA TV unit. It's called Benali or Benjani or Biriyani or something. A shite Premier League player or ace rice dish or something. I nearly ordered a biriyani from Rajdoot but went instead for the saag gosht, a decision I'll forever be grateful for.

The new unit looks great. These Swedes are clever bastards. Not only did their flag inspire Boca's magnificent kit, arguably the greatest template in world football, but they also inspired the defensively sound flat pack four.

Boca are winning. Good on them. I like their ground. I Iike them. Even if their whole vibe is West Ham who win stuff.

EIM
BBC News
Buenos Aires

(My TV unit is called brusali, apparently. Just looked it up. Thought that was an Italian cured meat. Who knew.)

[danielmak]

I finally got around to watching River-Nacional. The late goal was brutal for Nacional. Then a red card and a goal within the first 30 minutes of the second leg. I decided to jump to other viewing to help stay calm. Nacional just has no threat up front, but I've been saying that for the past 3 years. Looking at the final score shows that I made the right choice. 2-6 to River. As we discussed a lot last year, I don't think too many people wanted another River-Boca final. I also never like a final between two teams from the same domestic league. So, my preference would be River-Santos in the final if Boca wins the 1/2 final. If Boca loses then I prefer Palmeiras-Racing.

And I should add that it really looks like the Sudamericana is headed toward an all Argentine final or one of the biggest minnows ever to make a final: Coquimbo Unido. I'm a bit torn on this one (in theory since I have not watched any of these games since the re-start). I love the idea of a minnow disrupting things and I'm elated when a Libertadores flunky does not make it to a final. I don't really have any teams in Argentina that I follow closely. But I really liked the Velez sides when Garecha was the coach, so they come about as close to a side that I like to see do well. But I've also enjoyed Lanus' disruption of the bigger sides with their recent successes. And if Crespo is still coaching Defensa, that's also a nice story. But for me, it would be great to see a Velez-Coquimbo final. No Libertadores dropouts and that Velez uniform is pretty dope.

[cantagalo]

Santos face either Racing or Boca next in their bid to become the first Brazilian club to win 4 Libertadores.

Gremio exit for the second year running after a heavy second leg defeat to fellow Brazilians. Last year it was Flamengo in the semi-finals.

[ursus arctos]

Cuca dressed for the occasion

https://twitter.com/foxsportsbrasil/status/1339360359912796168

[cantagalo]

Santos bring on Marcos Leonardo, age 17.

[cantagalo]

Gremio pull one back. They couldn't, could they? 81 minutes gone.

Edit: No they can't. 4-1 Santos.

[cantagalo]

Great to see Santos continuing their tradition of producing young homegrown talent. Kaio Jorge and Sandry Santos are both just 18.

[cantagalo]

Thanks Ursus. That goal merits repeated viewing.

Kaio Jorge has wrapped it up at 3-0.

[ursus arctos]

https://twitter.com/goleada_info/status/1339338234376167424

[cantagalo]

The first leg was good but this is even better.

20 minutes gone and Santos have shot into a 2 goal lead over Gremio thanks to a goal after just 12 seconds* from Kaio Jorge and a glorious second on the break by the wonderful Marinho.

Can't see a way back for Gremio from here.

*Apparently the fastest goal in Libertadores history.

[torres]

The BBC are showing seven games including the semifinals and final.

[cantagalo]

A really good game between Gremio and Santos last night. Santos, without Soteldo due to Coronavirus, took the lead through Kaio Jorge and Gr?mio had to wait until the final minute to equalise with a VAR-assisted penalty. Moments earlier Santos had missed the chance to clinch it on the break. The man who scored the penalty was 35 year-old Diego Souza. I saw him several times last year for Botafogo where he appeared unwilling or unable to break into more than a slow trot. Credit to Renato Ga?cho for revitalising him. He's still not that mobile but is Gremio's leading scorer this year.

In their delayed last 16 game, Inter did much better than I predicted by winning 1-0 at Boca before going out on penalties.

[jason voorhees]

QUARTERS BEGIN

My neighbor's team against Palmeiras tonight.

Tomorrow:
Gremio Santos
Boca Internacional

Thursday:
River Nacional

[cantagalo]

Vasco bowed out of the Copa Sulamericana last night with a 1-0 win at home to Defensa y Justica. They had drawn the away leg 1-1 but the manner of the defeat will make Vasco fans even more depressed than they already are. They were without their only success story this season, Argentinian striker German Cano, who they somehow managed to sign from Independiente Medellin. How they are going to manage to pay for him is a mystery. His place was taken by Ribamar, a striker so inept he has become the target of ridicule. As you will see, he did not improve his reputation in this game. Added to that, DyJ's winning goal was due to a horrible blunder by young keeper Lucao who left the pitch in tears. It's probably just as well there were still no fans attending.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4p9iRNSi6g

Their elimination is not the biggest of their problems. After a promising start in the league largely thanks to Cano's goals, they have won just once in the last 13 games and are now in the relegation zone. Predictably, they are on their third manager of the season and his position is precarious. It is also election time for club president and this year the atmosphere is even more toxic than usual with rival supporters of the two candidates at each others throats. There were protests outside the ground even before last night's match.

One of the candidates has intimated that he'd like to sign Mario Balotelli who, I would suggest, is not quite the type of player Vasco need at the moment.

[cantagalo]

Boca 1-0 winners, goal by Tevez, who appears to be going on forever.

Just before the kick-off there was a nice shot of Tevez embracing the even more elderly Andreas d'Alessandro who is 39. That he started last night says a lot about Inter's injury problems, particularly in attack where they were missing both Paulo Guerrero and Abel Hernandez. They have had to rely for goals on the journeyman midfielder Thiago Galhardo, who has been converted to a striker with surprising success.

They have had a torrid time since the departure to Europe of manager Eduardo Coudet to Europe. Even his replacement Abel Braga was missing last night, though most Inter fans wouldn't have been too upset about that.

I wouldn't rate their chances of overturning the deficit in the second leg.

[Sporting]

Boca 1-0 winners, goal by Tevez, who appears to be going on forever.

[jason voorhees]

Palmeiras makes me happy Olimpia didn't make it past Delfin, winning 5-0 for an 8-1 aggregate. They got the first half golazo then counterattacked them to death in the 2nd. That Mancha Verde half-a-stadium banner, tho.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GVwuHn5Am4

Nacional beat IdV in penals. Paraguay has a storm going on outside as nasty and terrifying as when they won the Sudamericana here last year as a goodbye tribute.

Libertad looks to be on their way with a 0-0 tie so far in the 1st in Bolivia. Should Jorge score it will immediately ignite to see if they can get the 2-0 for the 3-3 win with the away goal.

Inter is giving Boca all it can handle with these storms. 0-0 in the 1st.

[cantagalo]

I can't get used to Rodrigo Ceni managing Fla.

It looks like he is doing community service.

He should have subbed himself on to take Arao's penalty.

That defeat will have really hurt. Reigning champions and with the prospect of this year's (well, January's) final at the Maracana, under Rogerio Ceni within a couple of weeks they have been eliminated from both the Copa do Brasil and the Libertadores. Only the Brasileiro remains this year and they are arguably only third favourites for that behind Atletico Mineiro and S?o Paulo.

Not that Ceni is to blame. He has inherited a team still mourning the departure of Jorge Jesus and hit by key injuries, most notably to Gabigol. His replacement, Vitinho had a reasonable game but is nowhere near as assured a finisher. Should Ceni have selected Pedro instead? Quite possibly but then there is the problem of central defence. In the space of two second half minutes Rodrigo Caio, returning after a two month absence, foolishly got a second yellow and the error-prone Gustavo Henrique was partly responsible for the Racing goal. And their two most creative players, Everton Ribeiro and Arrascaeta, didn't have their usual impact and were substituted before the end.

Even Diego Alves, the penalty specialist couldn't help them out. He's saved penalties from Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo but couldn't get anywhere near Racing's.

[ursus arctos]

Racing's penalties were of a very high quality
Arias, their keeper, also played a blinder

[jason voorhees]

He did the right thing into teaching his keepers not to save penals and not to score them.

Racing scores in the 66th with Brasil '82 style defending to take the 1-0 lead, then poor Willian Arao scores in the 93rd with his afro only to miss his penal at spot #4 in the shootout to lose the shootout and quarterfinal 5-3 to Racing.

Night 1
Racing
River
Santos

Tomorrow:
Nacional - IDV (0-0)
Palmeiras - Delfin (3-1)
J Wilstermann - Libertad (1-3)

[ursus arctos]

I can't get used to Rodrigo Ceni managing Fla.

It looks like he is doing community service.

[jason voorhees]

Yeah, the psychology cuts both grotesque ways. It gives the team with less goals more time, and it gives the team with more goals more time to set up.

[ursus arctos]

Are injury time brawls now mandatory in close ties, or just recommended?

[jason voorhees]

Santos and River are through to the Quarters.

Santos lost 1-0 after winning 2-1 on the road for a 2-2 aggregate and River won 1-0 in the Monumental.

Racing - Flamengo is 0-0 at the end of the 1st half. Flamengo has the away goal in a 1-1 tie in the 1st leg.

[cantagalo]

Inter v Boca game tonight postponed until next week.