Argentine Apertura Round-Up: Newell’s Take The Reins As Banfield Slip Up

Friday, 27th November

Rosario Central 1 - 1 Atlético Tucumán

Independiente 2 - 0 Huracán

Saturday, 28th November

Chacarita Juniors 2 - 1 Godoy Cruz

River Plate 1 - 1 Estudiantes

Sunday, 29th November

San Lorenzo 3 - 0 Boca Juniors

Tigre 0 - 3 Vélez Sársfield

Banfield 1 - 2 Racing Club

Monday, 30th November

Arsenal 2 - 5 Lanús

Colón 0 - 1 Newell's Old Boys

Gimnasia La Plata 1 - 2 Argentinos Juniors

Rosario Central 1 - 1 Atlético Tucumán

A point each does little to ease either of these club’s worries as they both continue to flirt with relegation to Argentina’s second tier.

It was Central who started the better of the two sides and seemed to have been buoyed by their draw in last weekend’s Rosario derby against Newell’s. The home side took the lead through a header from Burdisso within the first ten minutes of the match.

The hosts were unable to hang on for a win however as Escobar’s 30 yard effort in the last quarter of a hour of the match earned Tucumán a draw on their travels.

Central go away to Godoy Cruz next weekend desperate to pick up something as they have played a game more than the teams around them in the relegation places. Tucumán meanwhile will look to collect at least a point when they entertain Colón.

Independiente 2 - 0 Huracán

The home side kept alive their dreams of forcing their way into next season’s Copa Libertadores with a strong finish to the season.

Both sides went into this game eager to prove something as Independiente had succumb meekly to high flying Banfield last week and the visitors had lost their manager Angel Cappa after defeat in their derby match with San Lorenzo.

This game was decided by a second half strike from Galeano and also Gandín grabbing his ninth of the season late on.

Independiente now lie just four points outside the Copa Libertadores spots for next season with three games to go. Huracán meanwhile went down to their tenth defeat of the season and the Apertura can not finish quickly enough for El Globo.

Chacarita Juniors 2 - 1 Godoy Cruz

A dramatic home win does Chacarita’s hopes of survival no harm going into the last three games of the Apertura. That the win came against one of their rivals at the foot of the table only served to make the victory that much sweeter for the home side.

Chacarita first took the lead midway through the opening period courtesy of a strike from Alustiza. Their visitors from Mendoza refused to roll over however and came up with a second half equaliser.

With the game looking destined to end in a draw up popped Morales in the fourth minute of second half injury time to bag a winner for the home team.

Chacarita stay bottom of the average points table to determine who is relegated but this win could well galvanise them to get a few more results and book their place in the Clausura. Godoy Cruz of Mendoza themselves must pick up a few points in their last games to ensure their own survival.

River Plate 1 - 1 Estudiantes

Estudiantes’ challenge on the Apertura title officially came to an end on Saturday when they failed to beat River Plate away.

For the first three quarters of the match it looked like the visitors were on for a comfortable win. Desábato gave them the lead on the half hour mark and they continued to create the better chances of the game.

The turning point came however when Núñez was dismissed for Estudiantes with 15 minutes of the match left to play. The red card lifted the hosts and it was the returning Ortega who snatched the equaliser deep into injury time.

Estudiantes now play their last game of the season this week at home to Chacarita before jetting off to the Club World Cup. It remains to be seen if River’s head coach Astrada has done enough with this three game unbeaten run to keep his job when the club get a new president this weekend.

San Lorenzo 3 - 0 Boca Juniors

There’s no let up in the bad times for Boca at the moment and this crushing defeat away to San Lorenzo was testament to that fact.

A mixture of hapless defending and clinical finishing gave the host the perfect platform to secure their second win on the bounce. Two goals in the first 20 minutes by Aguirre and a strike early in the second half from Bordagaray resulted in some ugly scenes in the Boca section of the crowd.

The visiting players and their manager Alfio Basile were visibly shaken by the fans’ reaction and they rushed for the shelter of the dressing room at the full time whistle. Diego Simone’s San Lorenzo keep their Copa Libertadores dream alive but simply must carry on winning to turn it into a reality.

Tigre 0 - 3 Vélez Sársfield

The Clausura champions maintained their return to winning ways with the emphatic win over bottom placed Tigre.

Although Tigre are safe from relegation this season getting thumped most weeks has turned the atmosphere around the club very sour indeed. This latest defeat was inflicted by a brace from Ponce with a strike in each half and another from international full-back Papa.

Vélez are six points off league leaders Newell’s at the end of the weekend and have plenty to play for going into the last three games. Tigre will hope things can not possibly get any worse before they get better.

Banfield 1 - 2 Racing Club

The big surprise of the weekend came at Banfield where the hosts fell to their first defeat of the season at home to struggling Racing.

This result was truly unthinkable before the game as Racing went into the match having only recorded two victories all season compared with Banfield’s ten.

Martínez gave the visitors an early lead before the Apertura’s top goalscorer Silva pulled Banfield level with his 13th of the season. With Racing having plenty to play for at the wrong end of the table they continued to come at their hosts and where rewarded through Mercado’s winner.

The result hands the league lead over to Newell’s while Racing will now have extra belief that they can get out of the drop zone before the end of the season.

Arsenal 2 - 5 Lanús

Lanús hit five away at Arsenal to keep their Copa Libertadores hopes for next season right on track.

It was nip and tuck in the first half when Galván gave Arsenal the lead before Blanco drew level to make it all square at the interval. In the second half it was Arsenal who again took the lead through Yacuzzi but this time the punishment from the visitors was far more severe.

Menéndez and Biglieri both slotted before Salcedo converted a penalty kick and then Pelletieri added real polish to the scoreline in second half injury time.

Lanús remain well placed to nick a spot in next year’s Copa Libertadores while Arsenal could do with a few more points before the season is over to guard against the drop.

Colón 0 - 1 Newell's Old Boys

It took a single goal away at Colón to shot Newell’s to the top of the league with only three games left to play.

The team from Rosario knew full well before the game what a win would do for them after they had watched Banfield fall to their first defeat of the season the day before.

Joaquín Boghossian seemed to get the ball trapped under his feet on the edge of the box midway through the second half but excellent control saw him beat three defenders and fire off the winner into the bottom corner. It was Boghossian’s ninth strike of the season and the goal puts his club on top of the Apertura table.

Colón’s second defeat in three games does little for their Copa Libertadores hopes but they still have a few games to get the points required. After all they will not be coming up against the quality of Boghossian every week.

Gimnasia La Plata 1 - 2 Argentinos Juniors

Gimnasia threw away the lead in the round’s final match to gift all three points to Argentinos. The home side’s wastefulness sees them continue to struggle against relegation to Argentina’s second tier.

Things looked so promising for the home side after Vizcarra gave them the lead on the hour mark but their defence invited Argentinos on to them more and more as the game wore on.

Hauche and Prósperi were the grateful recipients of Gimnasia’s generosity as they both struck to take the points back to Buenos Aires.

The games are now running out for Gimnasia to book their place in the Clausura and with every defeat relegation draws a little closer.