Super Saves Give Emelec Win

Last time I checked Superman was named Clark by Ma and Pa Kent, and his place of birth was the planet Krypton. Turns out that's not true, that he was born in Ecuador, his name is Marcelo Elizaga, and he plays goal for Emelec. If not for his spectacular display Emelec surely would not be walking into the group stage of the Copa Libertadores with a 2-1 win over Newell's Old Boys.

Newell's played well, and truly did not deserve to lose. At the half the score was still 0-0, but the halftime highlights told the story, four quality chances for Newell's, while Emelec only managed one.

Joao Rojas took advantage of a flatfooted Newell's defense in the first minute of the second half to put Emelec up 1-0. As I recall, there was at least two time that Newell's suffered this fate during the Apertura. Just one more thing for Sensini to work on. Six minutes later saw Hugo Barrientos score his first goal for La Lepra to even things up at one goal a piece. Had that score held, Newell's would have won on away goals.

That wasn't to be, as Carlos Quiñónez scored the winner for Emelec in the 66th minute. Even though Newell's lost, they had the better of the play through out the game. Even after veteran defender Rolando Schiavi was given a red card in 85th minute (presumably for arguing the yellow he had just been given) Newell's pressed the attack. In the end, the difference was the quality of Emelec's keeper. It's rare for me to mention a man of the match that isn't a Newell's player, but Elizaga deserves all the praise he is no doubt reaping. That said, Newell's best player was Mauro "El Gato" Fórmica, and the third best player on the field was former Newell's player Pablo Perez.
Question is, where was this Perez when he played for Newell's? Had he shown this kind of quality for La Lepra, I doubt that the would have let him go so easily.

Ah, well, hindsight is 20/20, as they say. At least now the team can focus on the Clausura. Considering that with the World Cup this summer the championship is being compressed, the added matches that would have been played had Newell's gone on to the Libertadores group stage would have been more than exhausting.

Up next, it's on to the Diego Armando Maradona stadium to face Argentinos Jrs on Monday... you know, I've always found it a bit ironic that the team that Diego first played for has named their stadium after him, but he only talks about playing for two teams in Argentina. Those teams? Boca Jrs, and Newell's Old Boys.

Alright, Who's The Joker Who Handed Out Blanks?

Dare I say that it's all but over for Newell's Old Boys in the Copa Libertadores?

With the strongest starting line up the team has fielded in years, La Lepra had to settle for a 0-0 deadlock against first round rivals Emelec. That was not the outcome we were looking for from the home leg.

It's not like anyone can say that Sensini didn't do everything he could to ensure a victory. When it was pretty obvious that Emelec weren't going to be much of a threat to score, he brought on the reinforcements. First there was Diego Torres for Nahuel Roselli (a forward for a midfielder,) followed by Christian Sánchez Prette taking the place of Lucas Bernardi (a playmaker for a defensive midfielder.) Juan Quiroga coming on for Jorge Achucarro (a wingback at best for a forward) was a mere afterthought, with only some ten minutes left to play.

Below are the highlights, such as they are:

From what I've read, and upon viewing the above video footage, Newell's had the better of the chances. Problem is, of course, once the final whistle blows the only thing that counts is the number of times you put the ball in the back of the net... and today no one was able to produce anything even close to a goal.

Now Newell's only hope to gain the group stage of the Copa is to do so in Equador, with that match schedule for Febuary 10th. For now, it's on to the opening march of the Clausura where Newell's will host Independiente.

Emelec On The Horizon

With Newell's Old Boys first match of the Copa Libertadores only three days away, I still haven't learned all that much about their first round opponents, Emelec of Equador. My first worry was that the away leg would be played at altitude, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Emelec's home stadium is in Guayaquil, the largest city in Equador, and it's main port, elevation 13.2 feet (4 meters) above sea level.

Emelec has an all foreign coaching staff, with new Argentine head coach Jorge Luis Sampaoli heading the list. Uruguayan Youth Coach Juan Ramon Silva is the only member of the staff who isn't from Argentina. In theory this could give them a bit of an edge, as they will be better prepared to play against an Argentine opponent.

There are also three players on the roster from Argentina, forwards Hernán Peirone (aquired from San Lorenzo,) Santiago Biglieri (on loan from Lanús,) and a former Lepra, midfielder Pablo Pérez. Both Peirone and Pérez were not impressive in their showing for Emelec, and there was talk that they would be released before the 2010 season kicked off. Sampaoli has reinvested some confidence in the two, and even took to experimenting, with Pérez being converted from an attacking midfielder to a right sided wing back. Biglieri, on the other hand, has just arrived, but considering that he only managed 13 goals while playing 99 matches for Lanús does not cause much concern.

On Newell's side it seem there is little pressure going into the Copa. From what I understand the focus will be on the domestic campaign. This, in the long run, should be a good thing. It's very doubtful that this team could win the Copa this year, and better to focus on maintaining a high position in the league so that, with luck, a return to the Libertadores in 2011 will be with in reach.

Still, I expect Newell's to make it past Emelec and on to the group stage. We will certainly know more after Wednesday's match. If anyone watches the match, please let me know your impressions of the game, as I will be trapped at work, trying to make my rent.

Also, please take the time to check out the new poll. While doing so, please try to vote with your head, not your heart. I know that isn't always an easy thing to do, but sometimes it's what we need to do.

First Match Of The Copa Libertadores 2010

Guess it's official, the first match between Newell's Old Boys and Copa Libertadores rivals Emelec will be January 27th, 2010. I have been searching for confirmation of that for the past week, and finally found it on Newell's official website.

Now, I've got to shut down my computer, and get into work. More thoughts latter...

Police Over Reacting, Libertadores, Transfer Rumblings

I told myself after the Newell's loss to San Lorenzo in the final match of the Apertura, I'd take a break and not write anything on my blog until the weekend... so much for promises.

I never like hearing about violence at matches, whether it's before, during, or after. Sure, as any journalist will tell you, it makes for "good copy,"* just like when I started writing ALIASL then president Eduardo Lopez made "good copy..." doesn't mean I enjoy writing about such things.

That said, I have to bring up the fact that there was an altercation between police and Newell's fans outside the stadium after the San Lorenzo game. One of the reasons I started writing about Newell's was because I was frustrated at the lack of coverage in the English speaking press/news sites. Because my Spanish is limited, all I can tell you is that Newell's president Guillermo Lorente has made a statement that the police over reacted to the situation. If anyone would care to take a look at the story I found in Spanish, you can find it here. If you can get back to me on what happened, please do so. As much as I don't like having these things happen, I don't like knowing half the story even more.

I did find the following footage on Youtube, though it really doesn't show much:


There's also been some news on the Copa Libertadores front. Newell's will face Ecuadoran side Emelec in the first round in an home/away battle to make it to the 2nd round of the competition. The winner on aggregate will go on to join Internacional of Brazil, Cerro from Uruguay, and Deportivo Quinto of Ecuador in group 5. Interestingly enough, Cerro is the former club of one Joaquín Boghossian, Newell's leading goal scorer during the Apertura.

I've also heard that River Plate are interested in defender Juan Insaurralde. I'm hoping we can hang on to him, but if River makes a solid offer, well, anything is possible. Lorente has stated that the team will hold on to Boghossian as long as possible, and that the team is looking for reinforcements for the coming Clausura and Libertadores campaigns. Thing is, the money for any in coming players has to come from some where...



* "Good copy," for those who aren't familiar with the term, refers to the newsworthiness of a subject. "Good copy" draws in readers. "Bad copy" will bore your readers, and drive them away.