Past Three Matches, And The Final Two

I am not going to use my health issues to excuse my not doing much writing of late... it is more my worrying about my health that has kept me from doing so. Rest assured that I am well enough, just some issues with hemorrhoids... and we will leave it at that.

During my absence (writing, not watching and following) Newell's Old Boys lost two games in a row to Tigre 3-1 and then to San Lorenzo 3-2, both away games against tough opponents. San Lorenzo, tough? you ask. They may be in the bottom half of the table, they may be in the Relegation Playoff zone, but they are still San Lorenzo.

Last weekend, at home, Newell's beat Independiente 2-1, a win that put La Lepra into third place, only two points off the 33 point pace set by Boca Juniors, and a point from Tigre and Arsenal who are tied for second. With two matches to go even Vélez Sarsfield and All Boys are still in the race, at least mathematically, as they are only three points from the top.

That said, let us look at the teams the contenders will be facing in the final two matches, and my predictions:

Boca Jrs: 33 Points
Home - Arsenal (32) - Boca win
Away - All Boys (30) - Draw

Tigre: 32 Points
Away - Vélez Sarsfield (30) - Vélez win
Home - Independiente (18) - Tigre win

Arsenal: 32 Points
Away - Boca (33) - Boca win
Home - Belgrano (Córdoba) (21) - Arsenal win

Newell's: 31 Points
Away - San Martín (San Juan) (19) - Newell's win
Home - Lanús (24) - Newell's win

Vélez Sarsfield: 30 Points
Home - Tigre (32) - Vélez win
Away - Racing Club (19) - Vélez win

All Boys: 30 Points
Away - Argentinos Jrs (23) - Draw
Home - Boca (33) - Draw

If the combined points of opponents mean anything, Newell's would seem to have an advantage as their opponents have only managed 43 points between them. Boca has it worst off (62), followed by All Boys (56) Arsenal (54), Vélez (51), Tigre (48). If things go according to my predictions Boca end the season with 37 points, as do Newell's. Vélez in second with 36, Tigre and Arsenal with 35, and All Boys finish with 32. This, of course, would result in a playoff for the championship between Boca and Newell's.

Will this happen? Only time will tell.

Crowded At The Top

Found this screen shot from the end of Boca Jrs 0-0 draw with Vélez Sarsfield on Facebook - posted by COMUNIDAD LEPROSA. While it shows Newell's Old Boys on top, it also shows that with five games to go the Clasura is far from over, no less than six teams are biting at our heels. It is very exciting to be leading the league, and will be somewhat disappointing at this point if we do not win the championship.

Still, after the previous year and a half, just winning more games than we have lost is quite an accomplishment... So, if we do not win the championship, do not cry, do not get angry. Instead we should celebrate the miracle turn around that has been brought to us by Gerardo Martino.

And if we DO win the title? The joy will overflow all boundaries.

Gracias, Tata!

Good 1st Half, Poor 2nd... Still A Win

Newell's Old Boys won the first half, then lost the second to Unión de Santa Fe... but when you win your half 3-0, and only lose the other 0-1? In the standings it still counts as a win for La Lepra and the three points earn puts them on top of the table all alone. Granted, Boca Jrs are behind only by a win, and have yet to play their match this weekend. That will take place tomorrow as they host Vélez Sarsfield, who now trail Newell's by five points. (Here is to hoping for a draw.) Newell's goals came from Víctor Figueroa (5'), Santiago Vergini (38'), and Maximiliano Urruti (41'). Former Newell's player Matías Donnet scored the lone goal for Unión (57'). Juan Pablo Avendaño received a red card (87') for the visitors... somehow I did not see it (must have been distracted, as I also was keeping a half eye on a couple of other matches.) Now regular reader will notice that I have missed a few games... well, I have not actually missed them, I just did not get around to writing about them. I could blame my current health problems have been keeping me from writing as much as I would like, but truth is, while that is part of what is keeping me from posting, it is also a matter of having too many interests, not enough time. So has the schedule for the matches from the past few weeks. That said, I really need a nap, but have a bunch of other things I need to get to. Sigh. Hopefully I can get my health back to where it needs to be in order to post more often than I have... Up next are fellow title contenders Tigre (currently four points behind Newell's, but, like Boca, have yet to play this weekend... as they face Colón de Santa Fe in El Cementerio de los Elefantes makes me confident that they will remain four points behind us.

Sharing First Place

Last week, in an online discussion with a fellow Lepra, I mentioned that I was happy with the way Newell's Old Boys have been playing, but was concerned that we were not scoring enough goals, that only Maximiliano Urruti seemed to be scoring goals. So what happens today? Newell's beat Banfield 3-0 at home, with goals from Santiago Vergini (68'), Fabián Muñoz (86'), and Víctor Aquino (90').

I cannot say much about this win, other than I am happy, and that it placed us, at least temporarily, in a tie for first place with Boca Jrs (as I write Tigre and Boca are tied 1-1 with about five minutes to play, which puts Boca one point ahead of Newell's... opps... goal Tigre, or rather an own goal by Rolando Schiavi, back to a first place tie. Could it be that El Flaco's heart is still red and black?) * Editor's Note: Forgot to mention WHY I cannot say much about the match - I had to go into work. By the time I got to where I could get internet, the game was over.

Guess I should now state that I am worried by the fact that most of our goals seem to come in the second half.

Also find it a bit strange that it was not all that long ago that Newell's had to settle for second place when Banfield won a championship by a mere point. Much has changed for both teams since then, but now, it seems, Newell's are back in the title chase.

And it is over, Tigre 2 - Boca 1! Newell's will have a share of first place for a week. We will see what happens next weekend as Newell's play away to Arsenal, while Boca head to Córdoba to face Belgrano.

Relections On What Has Past

By now anyone who might be reading this surely knows that Maximiliano Urruti scored late in Newell's Old Boys match against Godoy Cruz to earn a valuable point on the road. Some will argue that Newell's should have won, and certainly they could well have.

Nicolas Olmedo put Godoy Cruz down a man when he was red carded in the 53rd minute with his team leading 1-0. After that Newell's pressed for the equalizer, which they finally did achieve, but far too late to find a second goal to take all three points. While it is nice to point out that the team is playing well and winning, that we sit in third place after nine matches, there is still the matter that, other than Urruti, there is still a lack of good finishing.

I still feel that Mauricio Sperduti could be scoring more, but when he has done so it has been from the right side of midfield, a position now occupied by Pablo Perez, who is playing far to well to be left out or moved - he is the only other player to have scored more than one goal... with two.

I have to wonder, Sperduti has been playing as a forward... could he take on the role of a central attacking midfielder? And would playing in such a position allow him to find his goal scoring form?

Other than that, there is not much to complain about. The midfield is solid and hard working. The defense, while not perfect (who is?), have only allowed six goals, tied with Arsenal and All Boys for the fewest goals allowed in the Apertura so far.

Prior to the current championship the team had gone through a year and a half where they did not seem to get along. No one seemed to be talking to anyone else, everyone trying to do everything themselves. Now they are playing as a unit, everyone doing their part towards achieving a common goal. Winning.

When the championship is over, a top five finish in the Apertura will make me more than happy. Every point earned will help next year when, despite how well they are doing now, Newell's could still be facing a relegation battle.

If they can keep playing as hard as they have, and find a way to score a few more goals, it will not be a battle, but a cake walk.

Temporary Leaders

Racing Club gave Newell's Old Boys a better game today than the 2-0 score might make it look. Still, a great result for La Lepra, marking four wins in a row, all of which have seen the team from Rosario hold their opponents scoreless. The difference boils down to Racing being called for offsides often, while Maximiliano Urruti and Pablo Perez both beat offsides traps to score the games two goals.

The first goal came in the 60th minute from some smart passing, going from Mauricio Sperdutti to Lucas Bernardi to Perez back to Bernardi who put the ball through the defense for Urruti to track down and guide past Racing keeper Sebastián Saja. With that first goal Newell's took over sole possession of first place, even if it turns out to be short lived (as I write, Boca Juniors lead Estudiantes 2-0 putting Boca at 17 points and pushing Newell's back to second place... a draw would give Estudiantes 16 points, equaling Newell's.) It also gave Urruti his fourth goal in eight matches. Not a bad scoring rate at all!

Now comes the strange part. Bernardi is a defensive midfielder. He is not known for his play in the attacking half, never has been. He set up the first goal for Urruti, and he set up the second, sending a wide cross to a wide open Perez who blasted the shot past Saja and into the upper part of the net.

8 games into the Clausura and Gerardo "Tata" Martino has Newell's Old Boys playing so well that they have already matched the 16 points they gained in 19 games of played during the Apertura.

It does look like we will have to settle for second place for the moment, as Boca now leads Estudiantes 3-0 with some fifteen minutes to play. All things considered, second place is far better than anyone could have expected. If we can end up there when the Clausura is over I will be more than happy. If, and it is still a huge if at this point, Newell's some how manages to win the title? I will celebrate the moment, but worry about next season, when Newell's will still need points to avoid relegation. Being Champions would mean we would be back in the Copa Libertadores, and I do not think we will have the depth to play on two fronts.

Do You Believe In Miracles?

Some where there is a fan of Vélez Sarsfield saying his team was tired from playing a midweek Libertadores match. An excuse. Some where a Vélez fan is wishing he had not bet his team would easily beat Newell's Old Boys. A regret. Some how Newell's not only managed a 1-0 away victory, but did so with out even allowing one shot from a rival player. A fact.

I watched Vélez beat Deportivo Quito 1-0 last Thursday. I had hoped it would be a difficult game so that Newell's would have an easier time when they entered the match in José Amalfitani Stadium on Monday night. That did not happen.

That still did not keep Newell's from dominating play. The midfield was like a swarm of bees... while they did not win every challenge they did force turn overs, continued to make quick passes, keeping the ball moving.

Late into the match the score was still 0-0, and I would have been happy with the single point. Hernán Pellerano and his team mates had other plans. They kept pressuring for a goal, and finally one came. It was 35 seconds into injury time when Pellerano made his way deep into the enemy's penalty area to volley the ball off the crossbar, dropping just over the goal line for the games only goal. That is the first goal for Pellerano for Newell's. Ironically he started his career with Vélez.

Here are the best of the highlights. Note that the only one belonging to the home team is a failed attempt at a Hand Of God...

While I am not yet ready to call Gerardo Martino a savior, this win was certainly a miracle I could never have envisioned. The fact that after going through the Apertura with only one win, and now Newell's have tucked three straight wins under their belts? The fact that seven games into the Clausura we are only two points from league leaders Estudiantes?

Yes, Martino has the team playing well, but to be a savior, in my eyes, we must continue to win, and above all else avoid relegation come next year.

Up next Newell's will play host to Racing Club. Dare I ask for a fourth win in a row for my birthday weekend?

Slim Margin, But Victory None The Less

Having missed Newell's Old Boys 3-0 win against Colón de Santa Fe due to a minor injury, and having played most the year with out impressing his mark, Mauricio Sperduti went into the match against Atletico Rafaela and proved that he can still be a force to be reckoned with. He was the best player on the field for much of the match, and provided the lone goal of the contest in the 24th minute off a well taken header... not the usual sort of goal we are used to seeing from El Gordo, but a welcome one none the less... less encouraging was the fact that when Sperduti left the match in the 80th minute he looked spent.

I saw a lot of good things in this game. Newell's passing was encouraging, if not perfect. There were a lot of one and two touch quick passes, and the midfield moved the ball around well. The defense held the opposition to few chances, which allowed Peratta a virtual night off (he only faced one actual shot on net).

Granted, this was against an opponent who is not exactly having a great season, but neither have we. This was the first time Newell's have won two games in a row in I do not know how long. During the entire Apertura La Lepra only secured one win. After six matches we have tripled that.

That is not to say that all is well. With all the passing we ended up with nine shots on net, which is great. Problem is, other than the goal from Sperduti, none of these shots were the sort that gave Rafaela keeper Guillermo Sara much to worry about. Most of them, in fact, were directed straight at him.

No, there is still much to improve upon in the attacking third of the pitch. Poor finishing, learning when to take a hard shot and when to pop a floater over the head of the keeper... with better finishing, and/or shot selection this could easily have been another 3-0 win.

Still, the win does put Newell's up to 10 points, only four off from current leaders Tigre. After only six matches this does not mean much, but after the disaster that was the Apertura I doubt that anyone would have guessed on the team starting out the Clausura so well.

Up next Newell's head back to Buenos Aires to face Vélez Sarsfield. Walking away from this match with a point will not be easy. Getting all three will take a near miracle.

Routing Colón Gives Newell's Hope

After two straight 2-0 loses, away to Boca Jrs and at home against Belgrano, Newell's Old Boys needed a confidence builder. Heading into Sante Fe to face Colón was not a recipe for such, but sometimes things work out far better than expected. The home of Colón is nicknamed "El Cementerio de los Elefantes", the Elephant's Graveyard. Visiting teams going there hoping for three points fail far more often they succeed.

I was not able to watch the match, as it was played on Friday while I was at work, and ended about the time I was leaving. Driving home I had a brief feeling that the game ended 3-0... which I put aside quickly, as holding such as a truth would surely mean that Colón had won. Instead I began singing in my head: "Yo no soy un Elefante, soy un leproso es verdad..." which is all I remember of a four line song I wrote when Newell's were last fighting for the title, and were heading into Sante Fe needing a win.

Imagine my surprise when I got home and checked on the score. Colón 0 Newell's Old Boys 3. HOLY SHIT! I could not help but make the exclamation out loud. I was hoping for a point, dreaming of three, but never imagined that La Lepra could roll over Colón in Sante Fe, not this current team anyway. But it had happened.

Pablo Perez scored the first goal off a corner in first half injury time. The cross from the left was poor, but so was the attempted heading clearance, which Perez fought for and won with the kind of individual effort we have seen far too little of over the past year and a half. 1-0. As he celebrated Perez pointed into the stands, at the hincha who had traveled to support a team that had let them down in the previous two games.

I can only imagine that Colón completely fell apart in the second half. Iván Moreno y Fabianesi received a straight red card in the 69th minute put the home side down to 10 men. Gerardo Alcoba was sent off in the 82nd, and Colón where then out numbered 11 to 9.

Martín Tonso who had come on for Leandro Torres, scored Newell's second goal. In the 87th minute Lucas Bernardi turned playmaker, feeding a perfect return pass to the young attacking midfielder that left only goalkeeper Diego Pozo to beat. 2-0. It was a thing of beauty, but the best was yet to come.

Maximiliano Urruti had scored two goals in Newell's first two matches, and against Colón he scored the final goal of the match with what may just be the goal of the tournament. Five minutes into injury time he was feed a pass by Raúl Villalba. Again, goalkeeper Pozo was the only one left to beat. As he came out to cutoff the angles Urruti chipped the ball calmly over Pozo. One bounce, and it was in the net. 3-0.

Sure, the final two goals came after Newell's had a two man advantage, but it still feels good to get vital points on the road.

(Perhaps Roberto Sensini is not such a bad coach for Newell's after all... so long as he is running the opposing team - he took over Colón during the summer break.)

Up next Atletico Rafaela come to Rosario, match is scheduled for Sunday the 18th.

Bombonera Blues

Gerardo Martino stated before the match that Boca Jrs was the best team in Argentina. Boca went on to prove that as they defeated Newell's Old Boys 2-0. In terms of possession, attacking chances, La Lepra held their own in a stadium where few teams manage to do so. Add to that, Boca are coming off a championship Apertura, while Newell's had the sort of Apertura we would love to forget, but never will. Quite simply, Newell's were out classed, but not out played.

I can not say that I liked that Newell's tactics defensively left no one in midfield to collect clearances from the back. The offense is still missing a creative force, especially with Pablo Perez missing from action due to his fifth yellow card of the season against Argentinos Jrs. What chances that were there were not the sort that would give Boca keeper Agustín Orion much trouble.

Mauricio Sperduti continues to flounder, he seems to have lost his form ever since Mauro Fórmica left for England. If Newell's are going to really compete during this Clausura El Gordo has to find his form, or some one else needs to be given the chance to prove their worth.

Am I disappointed in the loss? Yes, but still encouraged that the team is playing far better than they did during the Apertura. Hopefully that leads to a lot more points over the course of the rest of the season.

Up next, Newell's head back to Rosario to host Belgrano de Córdoba. Hopefully that will make for an easy three points.

Here I am, it is two weeks into the Clausura, and I have not posted anything about Newell's Old Boys first two matches. And I do not have much time to write up much now, but here goes...

The first match saw Newell's visit Estudiantes and come away with a 1-1 draw. After thirteen draws in nineteen matches during the Apertura, it was difficult seeing any encouragement in such a result. This was a match between two teams that struggled through much of the Apertura, but Estudiantes should be better than they have shown this season.

Estudiantes scored first from the penalty spot, which defender Víctor López argued was caused by the opposing player the referee says he fouled having a hand full of his shirt. The video evidence is not conclusive, but does lend some support to his claim.

Newell's tactics to continually foul Juan Sebastián Verón was not exactly pretty futbol, but certainly sound. The veteran midfielder left the match early in the second half, and from there Newell's took over. Maximiliano Urruti brought the score level as a near perfect pass from Pablo Perez left the young forward with only the goalkeeper to beat.


I missed most of the second match, a 1-0 win at home against Arentinos Juniors. Family commitments do come first, but I did leave my neice's Birthday dinner early and got home in time to watch the final twenty minutes. What I saw was encouraging, but I still feel that we have a long way to go before we can call this team a good one. At least it looks like we may have a new goal scoring hero as young Urruti (he will turn 21 on Wednesday - Happy Birthday, Maxi) now has two goals in two games.


Up next is perhaps the toughest test of the Clausura, as Newell's head to Buenos Aires to face Apertura champions Boca Juniors.

Looking Ahead To The 2012 Elections

Just a little over three years ago Guillermo Lorente took over as president of Newell's Old Boys. Elections are supposed to be held every four years, meaning that the team had best turn their fortune around quickly or Lorente will find it very difficult retaining his position with the club. That said, let us take a quick look at the man who held the position before Lorente took over.

For those who do not know, the previous president at Newell's was Eduardo Lopez. This bastard, by hook and by crook, managed to avoid having elections for some 14 years. Lopez did not leave office peaceably, the Barras Brava, who had been working as team security under the rat, took everything they could out of the clubs offices... computers, paper work, security cameras, desks, tables, and chairs. The only thing that seemed to remain was the building, and a few busts of team founder Isaac Newell, but even those were vandalized before the keys were turned over to the new president. The bank account was not only drained, Lopez left the team well in debt, the total figures took two years to sort out due to Lopez and his cronies leaving no records behind. The final figure was some 68 million pesos in the red, a figure that will take years to balance.

Sadly, the administration headed by Lorente seems to have gone backwards in terms of performance. The team Lorente took over did fairly well, players that were brought in early on did well. Since the disclosure of the debt, however, things have fallen apart. No one wants to sell or loan a player of quality to a team that is likely to not be able to pay a fair price. Hampered by his attempts to balance the budget has lead to some massive mistakes in player signing, and dare I say sales as well... the sale of Mauro Fórmica could have been handled far better, and the departure of Nacho Fideleff left the team with out a true left back...

And then there was the complete and total fiasco that was the attempts to sign Juan Manuel Cobelli. The young Cobelli was proving to be a force as a true 9 early on during the 2011 Clausura, which has been the area the team has been lacking since Joaquín Boghossian left for Europe. Problem was Cobelli was still on a youth contract, and it was not until he had scored three goals that the team tried to sign him to a full professional contract. This error was compounded when the player, on the advise of his agent and older brother Sebastián Cobelli, made his intentions to not sign known. Sebastián, who had played for Newell's himself, sighted interest from teams in Europe. Bad advise it would seem as Juan Manuel then sat out the rest of the Clausura, and is currently on loan to Chacarita Juniors in the National B.

So far I have not seen anyone step forward and state that they will be challenging Lorente for the top position with Newell's, but that does not change my feeling that he will soon lose that lofty position if the team on the field does not turn things around, and quickly. The opening of the 2011 Apertura had me praying for points so that Newell's would not be facing a relegation battle during the 2012/13 season. Not only did those points not come, but the team performed so poorly that now as the 2012 Clausura draws near there is the worry that the relegation battle may happen now... and Lorente will certainly not survive a drop to the National B.