Argentinos Jrs Clausura 2010 Champions

On the final day of the Clausura there were two teams left fighting for the Championship, Argentinos Jrs and Estudiantes De La Plata. Argentinos held a one point lead over their rivals for the title, and in the end held on to that slim lead as both teams won their respective games,

Estudiantes beat Colon de Sante Fe at "El Cementerio de los Elefantes" 4-1, with Boselli scoring a hat trick. Colon had not lost a match at home during the Clausura until today, when the stadium's nickname may as well have been changed from "The Elephant's Graveyard" to "The Elephant's Stomping Ground."

Meanwhile, Argentinos did not have it so easy. Huracan put up a fight despite going down two men as Goltz and Jerez received second half red cards, yet they managed to score a late goal to make things interesting in a 2-1 loss.

Here are the weekend's full results:

May 14
Arsenal S. 1 - 2 Godoy Cruz Mza.
San Lorenzo 2 - 1 Newell's Old Boys
Banfield 3 - 0 Boca Juniors

May 15
Chacarita Juniors 1 - 2 Racing Club
Gimnasia La Plata 3 - 3 Atletico Tucuman
River Plate 1 - 5 Tigre
Independiente 1 - 0 Lanus
Rosario Central 0 - 0 Velez Sarsfield

May 16
Colon 1 - 4 Estudiantes
Huracan 1 - 2 Argentinos Juniors

Newell's Old Boys end the Clausura in 6th place, as Banfield beat Boca Jrs. Newell's did, however, manage to finish the over all standings in 4th place. Not bad at all. I would have never, honestly, predicted such a good season before it started. The top six teams, of course, qualified for the Copa Sudamericana. Here's how that finished up:

Argentinos & Banfield tied at 73
Estudiantes 71
Newell's 69
Independiente 68
Vélez Sarsfield 61

Each stage of the Sudamericana is a home-away knock out between two teams. All of Argentina's teams will start play in the second round, where, for some unknown reason, they are grouped against each other.

Banfield, due to their better goal difference over Argentinos, will play Vélez.
Argentinos face Independiente.
And Newell's get the task of facing Estudiantes.

I have yet to see when all this starts, but with the finals being scheduled as a home-away series for December 1st and 8th, I suspect the first round will begin very soon after the World Cup final.

Deflating End To A Spectacular Season

There isn't much I can say about Newell's Old Boys 2-1 loss to San Lorenzo to wrap up the 2010 Clausura, and the 2009-2010 season as a whole. How can I, I made it into work, despite having gone into the dentist this morning. Can't say that my day was any more productive than the players were on the field.

I can say that Rolando Schiavi made a rare defensive mistake that lead to Bernardo Romeo giving San Lorenzo the lead. That's no knock against Romeo, who is a gifted goal scorer, but the gift he received today he could have scored blindfolded.

I could also state that José Palomino made a foolish foul on Cristian Nuñez, gifting Newell's a penalty that Schiavi buried to redeem himself for his earlier blunder.

Nelson Benítez scored the winner off a corner, which was, as most goals off of corners are, pure luck. The cross was perfectly placed, and he made no mistake with his header, but there's no defenders to blame, it was just one of those goals that happen.

But all that can be seen in the clip below, which is all I've seen.

So, Newell's are still in 5th place with 30 points, and now must hope that Lanús and Banfield lose. Both sitting on 29 points with their final matches yet to be played. Banfield are hosting Boca Jrs as I write, the score still at 0-0 30+ minutes into the first half. Lanús will visit Independiente tomorrow.

Looking over the entire season, Newell's have had a very good year, far better than I expected when it all started. Over the course of the Apertura and Clausura they totaled 69 points, a full 17 points better than they did last year.

But losing the final match again... it's hard to take. And with all the players expected to leave, it's hard to see the future being this bright. But that's all part of the game, that's all part of being a fan, no matter what sport, no matter what team, there are always times like these.

Up next... well, I'll probably have a word or two to say after the above mentioned matches are concluded, and then it will be time for the transfer season to begin in earnest.

Oh, and there's this little dance that will be held in South Africa in a few short weeks. I'll probably have a few things to say about that as well.

Transfer Rumor Season Starts Early

The current season has one match to go, yet already I've been seeing the rumors of potential new signings fly. We already know that Newell's Old Boys will be losing quite a few players, Mauro Fórmica, Leo Vangioni, and Juan Manual Insaurralde are all being shopped around. Jorge Achucarro, Joaquín Boghossian are with the team on loan, and are unlikely to have their loans extended. Sánchez Prette is already gone, and barely saw any action during the Clausura anyway. Cristian Nuñez is also set to depart, though I'm not sure if he's a loan, or if the team is hoping to sell him to try and help ease the debt.

Now, there's a couple of names being bounced around as possible additions:

Nicolás “El Buitre” Pavlovich – currently with Argentinos Jrs. “The Vulture” is a decent striker, but has not been a regular starter for Argentinos. Talent wise, he's no where near Boghossian, and I'd even put him lower than Nuñez. He did, however, start his career with Newell's, so if the club can bring him back, he'll be an automatic fan favorite. At 32, he's certainly not a long term solution, but if he can come in and perform as well as Diego Mateo, and Lucas Bernardi have there will be no complaints, and plenty to cheer about.

Marcelo Gallardo – River Plate. All I'm going to say is NO! Gallardo was once a good playmaker, but has proven that he is well past his prime. At 34 he has announce he's leaving River, but, considering his current ability on the field, he should simply retire... even if that means joining a team in the USA. I'm sure MLS would be glad to have him.

I also came across the probably starting 11 for today's match against San Lorenzo:

Nahuel Guzmán
Agustín Alayes, Rolando Schiavi, Juan Insaurralde
Nahuel Roselli, Diego Mateo, Lucas Bernardi, Juan Quiroga
Mauricio Sperduti, Joaquín Boghossian, Emanuel Dening

Fórmica is out, as he received his fifth yellow card. Achucarro and Estigarribia are out as they are off to join their national team in preparation for the World Cup. Sebastián Peratta is not playing, but will be on the substitutes bench in the only odd replacement. It's probably just to get Guzmán some playing time in what is generally a match with little significance. Newell's are already qualified for the Copa Sudamericana, and the best we could hope for with a win would be to move up from 5th to 4th.

Now, how is it that I've been able to post this at 9am on a Friday morning? Normally I would be getting ready for work, but last night I had a filling pop out of a tooth. I called up my dentist this morning, and they have an opening at 10. I'm hoping that it's a simple visit, and will at least be able to get half a day in at work. Wish me luck.

2 From El Gato, 2 From The Spot, Add 2 More = One Big Party In The Park

Maybe it's just that Gimnasia y Esgrima de La Plata are already bound for the relegation playoffs, and the National B ghosts that were present in the stands threw them off their game, or maybe La Lepra are just continuing on a tear that saw them convincingly win their prior two games, but 6-0 routs just don't happen very often. Needless to say, it was a party in the park for Newell's fans, and an afternoon that Los Lobos will want to forget, but will most likely have nightmares about for the rest of the week, if not their entire lives.

The goals... ah, the goals. The first came when Marcelo Estigarribia was fouled barely a millimeter inside the area for a penalty (I haven't been impressed with Estigarribia's play, but I have to admit that he somehow draws a lot of fouls.) Joaquín Boghossian proceeded to score, giving him the team lead in goals scored during the Clausura with six. Not two minutes went by before Mauro "El Gato" Fórmica added to the lead with a shot that Gimnasia keeper Gastón Sessa only managed to delay on it's way across the goal line. Topping off the first half scoring came a goal from an unlikely source, as Lucas Bernardi found himself alone with the ball on the right, with only the goalkeeper to beat. Now, Lucas is a defensive specialist, but give him enough time and, well, one faked shot, and a chip over Sessa later and it was 3-0 Newell's.

I'll give credit to Gimnasia for their efforts, even when the went into the second half down 3-0, and down a man thanks to Alvaro Ormeño receiving a direct red card for a retaliation foul on Diego Mateo in the 44th minute, they still tried to push the ball forward. Problem was that they couldn't get anything past Sebastián Peratta. In fact, while they were credited with four shots on goal, every one of them went to nearly the exact same spot, towards the bottom corner to Peratta's left. Let's face it, after a while it gets predictable.

Mr Sessa changed from wearing florescent yellow and black, to black to florescent yellow between halves, but it did him no good.  Juan Manuel Insaurralde scored off a beautiful header to continue the assault. Fórmica added the fifth goal with a left footed blast that would have made Mario Zanabria proud. The final goal again came from the penalty spot, as Rubén Maldonado was caught with a hand full of Boghossian's shirt in the area, earning himself his second yellow card of the day, and thus Gimnasia's second red. Schiavi calmly scored from the spot. Down two men at that point, Gimnasia offered little offense from that point on, and Newell's cruised to a well earned victory.

First half goals:


Second half goals:


Up next, the final match of the Clausura, as Newell's visit San Lorenzo.

Corrections, Expectations, And Poking Fun At Bentral

I posted a few days ago that Sanchez Prette and Achucarro had already left the club as their loan contracts had run out. Seems that they were off, or my translation of the article I saw the news was, as Achucarro is in the expected line up for this weekend's match. Still, they will more than likely be leaving once the Clausura ends. We'll also most likely be losing Boghosian, unless his team in Uruguay can't find a buyer... and we can extend the loan. There's also the matter of the team's debt, and the sales of Formica, Insaurralde, and Vangioni are near sure things. In fact there's a report saying that a deal is close to being finalized that would send Insaurralde to Boca Jrs.

I'm not too worried about a mass exodus, as the last time I got caught up in one Newell's unloaded all their starting forwards, then went on to win the 2004 Apertura.

At any rate, here's the expected line up for Saturday's match against Gimnasia La Plata:

Sebastián Peratta
Alayes or Roselli, Rolando Schiavi, Juan Manuel Insaurralde
Mauricio Sperduti, Diego Mateo, Lucas Bernardi, Marcelo Estigarribia
Mauro Formica
Jorge Achucarro, Boghossian or Núñez

Gimnasia are firmly in the relegation playoffs, so we'll be facing a team with little to play for. Speaking of teams facing relegation, call them Canallas, Sinas, Sin Aliento, Bentral... Newell's crosstown rivals Rosario Central also look destined to have to play in the relegation playoffs. Due to this, over the past couple of weeks, Lepra have seen fit to taunt and tease their rivals. The pictures posted here are not my own, but have been widely circulated on Facebook, and I'm sure a few other places as well.

Now, while I do laugh along with all La Lepra every where at Central's fate, I do really hope that they manage to avoid relegation... so that they may once again face the playoffs again next year, and the year after that, and again, and... well, you get the idea.

Aftermath Of Newell's 2-0 Victory Over Arsenal

24 hours later...

Yes, I did post a brief note on the match last night, but due to time constrictions it was just that... brief.

With the win last night Newell's are on a five match unbeaten run, and two wins in a row, with two wins in a row. With the three points they have assured themselves a position in the 2010 Copa Sudamericana, but that's no reason to take their collective foot off the gas pedal.

With the way one Mauricio Sperdutti has been playing in the last few games, I have to wonder why he wasn't a regular starter all along. Seriously, the man has nearly looked as though he's been possessed by the spirit of Leo Messi (hey, if others can compare Messi to Maradona...)

Peratta again had little to do, in fact the last two matches have almost been a vacation for him. Schiavi continues to play more like a player in his prime than a 37 year old veteran, Fórmica seems to have finally played himself back into form, Boghossian may not have scored last night, but he still did plenty to help the team win. I could go on, player by player, and everything right now seems to be in the right place... I just wish things could have started picking up a little earlier in the Clausura.

For Arsenal, however, the news continues to be bad. They extended their run of games with out a win to six, causing their coach, Jorge Burruchaga, to resign. In some ways I almost feel sorry for Arse, as it wasn't that long ago (2007) that they won the Copa Sudamericana. Assistant coach Carlos Ruiz will take over for the rest of the season.

Up next for Newell's it's back to Rosario as Gimnasia La Plata come to town.

Defenders Score, Attackers Defend

As Ray Davies once said, it's a mixed up, muttled up world...

Agustín Alayes in the 12th, and Rolando Schiavi 30th with the goals in Newell's Old Boys 2-0 road victory over Arsenal de Sarandí. Both goals were scored from headers.

Not many fans showed up for Arsenal. More tomorrow, off to bed.

Copa Sudamerica Dreams / Arsenal Preview

First off let me ask why, oh why must Newell's Old Boys next match be scheduled for Thursday? I wouldn't complain, save for the fact that I've been getting together with friends every Thursday night (except holidays, and such) for nearly thirty years straight... and as I've been hosting these nights for the past three it's not like I can gracefully bow out.

Still, I should be able to get the live feed of the match going... I might even persuade myself to move the computer to the room where we will be gathering, so it's not like I won't be able to see any of the game.

I'm really hoping that the 5-0 win over Colón de Santa Fe gives Newell's some momentum going into the final three games of the Clausura. Two of those matches will be on the road, starting with Thursday's match against Arsenal de Sarandí. La Lepra have not done well on the road so far this year, having won only one match out of seven away from the Estadio Marcelo Bielsa. After Arsenal, it's back home to face Gimnasia LP, and then back to Buenos Aires for a showdown with San Lorenzo.

Sticking to one match at a time (I'll get back to Gimnasia & Los Cuervos before we play them, I promise,) Arsenal should be an easy win. They have given up the most goals of the Clausura (28 - tied with Boca Jrs,) and are second worst on goal difference (-11 to Atlético Tucumán's -12.) They also have a worst record at home (2 wins 1 draw and 4 loses) than they do on the road (3 wins, 2 draws, 4 loses.)

Right now, after sixteen games, Newell's find themselves in 6th place, one point behind 5th place Lanús, the only team that the team realistically has a chance of overtaking. 5th place has always been my measuring stick for Newell's having a great championship, but, perhaps more than that, there is still the matter of earning a spot in the up coming Copa Sudamerica, and the team's placement in that tournament.

Having taken the time to look up what it takes to qualify (the top six teams over the course of the entire season - Apertura and Clausura combined - qualify from Argentina,) as well as those standing, I can say that Newell's could conceivably qualify in the first slot. Let's go ahead and look at where the remaining team that could qualify are:

65 pts Independiente
64 pts Estudiantes LP
64 pts Banfield
64 pts Argentinos Jrs.
63 pts Newell's
57 pts Vélez Sarsfield
56 pts Lanús
54 pts Colón (Sta.Fe)

I'd really love to look at this another way as well, what if the Primera División de Argentina was not split into two championships? Right now, if that were the case, there would be five teams that would still be in the title race with only three matches to go. But it is a two championship campaign, so let's get back to the Sudamericana. Newell's are in fifth place, but only two points behind qualifying leaders Independiente. Should Newell's, as is my wish, win all three of their remaining matches they stand a good chance of jumping over any of the teams above them.

Of course, I suppose I should look at the other possibility, and that would be that Newell's drops out of the qualifying positions. To avoid that, however, should be easy. Win one match, or tie all three, and the lowest the team would drop to would be the sixth, and final, qualifying spot.

And, finally, here's the anticipated starting 11 for Thursday's match against Arsenal:

Sebastián Peratta
Agustín Alayes, Rolando Schiavi, Juan Manuel Insaurralde
Mauricio Sperduti, Lucas Bernardi, Diego Mateo, Leonel Vangioni
Mauro Formica
Jorge Achucarro, Joaquín Boghossian

Newell's Steamroll Over Colón

After watching Newell's Old Boys destroy Colón de Santa Fe 5-0 I have to ask: just what has woken La Lepra up this late in the Clausura? Sure, Los Sabaleros were playing with out there best forwards, including their best goal scorer Oscar Fuertes, but that only explains why they didn't cause Sebastián Peratta many problems.

No, this was Newell's day, it's as simple as that. Every starter played to the best of their ability, no one more so than Joaquín Boghossian. The first time he put the ball in the back of the goal was called back due to two of his team mates being offsides. That didn't keep the big man from playing his best game in months, and, with service reminiscent of that which he got during the Apertura, he scored a pair of headers, the game's first and final goals to bookend the three others. He also narrowly missed lobbing a shot off a rebound that would have had Colón's keeper Diego Pozo beat by a mile. Not bad for a player who might not have been playing had Cristian Nuñez not been suspended for his red card during last week's Clasico Rosarino.

Mauricio Sperdutti scored the second goal with a golazo, Mauro Fórmica scored off a beautiful freekick for the third, while Jorge Achucarro notched the fourth. I'm disappointed for Leonel Vangioni, who has yet to notch a goal this season. He's come close several times, and against Colón he rang one off the crossbar.

Raúl Villalba looked like he's a player ready to become a force. He only started because both Diego Mateo and Lucas Bernardi weren't available, but as a lone holding midfielder he handled himself well, made a number of dangerous passes, and took a couple of shots from distance that weren't too far off the mark. With the two veterans in front of him, it may be a while before he can crack the starting 11 on a regular basis, but he'll only turn 21 this September, so he's got plenty of time.

Peratta spent more time taking goal kicks and punting the ball forward than he did making saves. He was credited with making three, but those were so easy he didn't even have to make moves on them. Still, he's one of my favorite players, so how can I not write a few word, and post a picture of him?

Perhaps even more impressive than the five goals was that this is, if I'm not mistaken, the first match I've seen Newell's play were not one of their players received a card. It's not that Juan Carlos Loustau didn't call any fouls (five against Newell's, eight for Colón,) but that none really deserved a carding. Two were doled out to Colón players, but I only recall Maximiliano Caire's, who was called for a hand ball when he seemed to intentionally punch the ball out of bounds rather than vie with a Newell's player who was rushing down the right wing (it was either Sperdutti, or Achucarro, I'm not sure.) The carding wasn't for the hand ball, however, but for protesting that he had struck it accidently.

With the team playing so poorly for much of the Clausura, it's good to get a blow out win. With luck Newell's can still end up in the top five, provided they win their final three matches. For now, let's enjoy today's goals again:


Next match with be on Thursday, April 29th when Newell's again travel to Buenos Aires to face Arsenal de Sarandí.

Newell's Old Boys - Colón de Santa Fe... Winner Gets The Women

As I've stated many times, my Spanish is somewhat limited, which makes following Newell's somewhat challenging at times. Some times on line translators are a big help, but others they are simply priceless:

"Newell's and Columbus hit by a place in the South American woman"

Translating that back we get:

"Newell' s y Columbus golpearon por un lugar en la mujer suramericana"

The original:

"Newell's y Colón chocan por un lugar en la Sudamericana"

Bottom line is, both Newell's and Colón are in the race for places in the next Copa Sudamericana. I'm not going to pretend to know what one has to do to qualify, but, for all the complaints there have been over the course of the Clausura, Sensini has a team that is in 6th place on the relegation table, and with 60 points in 34 matches over the course of the Apertura 2009 and current Clausura. If Argentina only played one championship over the course of the season, that would place them in 5th. Simply put, we've been doing fairly well, with a 2nd place finish in the Apertura we had a thrilling ride, now we seem to be suffering in the Clausura.

What am I doing posting at this hour? Well, I took a nap after dinner, and then a friend showed up at 12:30AM. But now it's time to get back to bed.

Adios, Collado. (May Your Stay Away From The Primera División Be A Long One)

Referees Javier Collado and Carlos Maglio may have seen their last of Argentina's Primera División. After poor performances over the weekend, Collado mishandling Racing Club's 3-1 victory over Vélez, while Maglio was in charge of Banfield's 3-1 lost to leaders Independiente (tied with Estudientes LP with 30 points,) both men have been demoted to the National B (Argentina's second division.)

Collado and Maglio weren't the only officials to be punished over the way they handled their duties. Pablo Lunati, Federico Beligoy, and Cristian Faraoni weren't sent down to the lower division, but each are facing suspensions after making poor calls in the matches they were assigned to referee.

The mistakes sited in reports were a penalty Lunati didn't call on a foul on Ariel Ortega during River Plate's match against Godoy Cruz, Beligoy not calling a penalty on a foul on Boca’s Nico Gaitan in the area during their match against Gimnasia, while Faraoni, if I understand correctly, called for a penalty when none existed against Lanús that was converted by Colón de Sante Fe's Esteban Fuertes.

All I can say is that it's about time such action were taken. Collado is nothing more than a menace, turning ordinary matches into near riot conditions with his truly arbitrary calling of matches. I honestly feel sorry for the teams that have to deal with his antics. This weekend that will be Olimpo and Unión de Sante Fe.

Lunati is another matter, as I've never seen him work a match where he didn't appear to be almost blatantly bias. As to which is better/worst between Lunati and Collado it's hard to say, but I'd go with Collado. There have been matches that he's called where he's not bothered making any calls until they had reached a level of violence where he had no choice but to blow his whitle, and at the end of all the matches he's called that I've seen there has been reasons for the loser, indeed even the winner to complain about the officiating.

The others I have either not seen, or the matches they called that I watched did not involve any controversial calls that I could make out.

With that said, I ran across the referees who WILL be working in the Primera División this weekend:

Huracán vs Independiente: Sergio Pezzota
Argentinos Jrs vs Gimnasia: Diego Abal
Racing Club vs Banfield: Jorge Baliño
Godoy Cruz vs Chacarita Jrs: Saúl Laverni
Estudiantes vs River Plate: Néstor Pittana
Atlético Tucumán vs Rosario Central: Rafael Furchi
Boca Jrs vs San Lorenzo: Gabriel Favale.
Lanús vs Arsenal de Sarandí: Juan Pablo Pompei
Newell’s Old Boys vs Colón de Sante Fe: Patricio Loustau
Vélez Sarsfield vs Tigre: Mauro Gianini

Guillermo Lorente Takes To The Field

While the Clasico Rosarino was (as far as I've heard) with out any major incidents, there is one story that has come to light. After the match between Rosario Central and Newell's Old Boys had finished, as I understand it, Newell's president Guillermo Lorente was making his way out of the stadium when he and his security entourage found the usual path from the visitor's box to the dressing room was not available. In trying to find another way out of El Gigante de Arroyito found the head of the Lepra taking a walk across the playing field, forced to take the player's exit, joining his players in the away team's dressing room.

Some radio stations accused Lorente of using rude gestures in response to the taunting the Sinas still in the stands were giving him. Having seen a clip of the event in question, I saw several gestures from certain individuals in the stands, but, while Lorente did appear to place his hand to his mouth or chin a couple of times, it looks more like a nervous reflex type action, rather than one of antagonism.

The footage, and an article in Spanish can be found here.

Now, question is, just what was going on that normal path to the locker room was blocked?

The Good And The Bad Of The Clasico Rosarino

In order of there occurance...

Who was supposed to be watching the far post?

Got nothing to say about this goal except thank God! Good match from Cristian Nuñez up until the red card. Bernardi... what was with that train wreck? What was your red card for? Diego Torres should have started from the beginning. Sorry, Achucarro, I just like the way Torres plays... he's a little bit more team orriented that's all...


Ah, I think I understand Bernardi's red card...

And on that note, goodnight.

Just Another Clasico Rosarino Draw

Here I sit, at a lose for words... and I'm supposed to be at a friend's within an hour.

The final score was 1-1, with Rosario Central's Diego Braghieri scoring first when no one bothered to cover him on a corner. Rolando Schiavi equalized for Newell's Old Boys from the penalty spot 13 minutes later, after Cristian Nuñez was taken down just inside the penalty area by Nahuel Valentini.

My biggest confusion as far as the match went was in the 34th minute, when both Central's Mario Angel Paglialunga and Newell's Lucas Bernardi were red carded on the same play. The way I saw the play, Bernardi was already sliding towards the ball when Paglialunga jumped in front in the way of his feet. If anyone can explain what happened on this double red card, I'd love to hear from you. In the 45th minute Cristian Nuñez received a red card, and I can't say I got a good look at it, either. The play was in the part of the field that was in shadows, so I'm not sure what happened, other than Newell's were down to nine men to Central's 10 at that point.

The player advantage didn't last long, as Valentini received his second yellow of the game in the 50th minute of play.

Central didn't look much better than a team that only has two wins after 15 games, and Newell's hardly looked any better. Mauricio Sperdutti had a good game, as did Schiavi, but I'd have to say that it was the play of Diego Mateo that earns the player of the match award, especially after Bernardi's expulsion.

At one point during the first half they set the fire hose loose into the crowd. There didn't appear to be any problems that I saw, nor did the announcers seem overly concerned. No knifes were found on the field, nor did anyone decide to donate their sunglasses to either goalkeeper.

So, another disappointing match. Nuñez and Bernardi will miss at least the next match, which will be next Saturday at home against Colón de Santa Fe.

1175 Reasons The Barras Bravas Should Behave

No matter what the sport, no matter what country your in, when two arch rivals get together to play each other there is always worries of problems between the two sets of fans. With that in mind the city of Rosario will see a total of 1175 policemen working security during tomorrow's Clasico between Newell's Old Boys and Rosario Central. If Central's El Gigante de Arroyito is filled to capacity (I know the away stands will be filled with Lepra) that's about one cop for every 40 fans, more or less.

Now, if every one of the 40000 plus fans expected to be at the match were troublemakers, the police would certainly be overwhelmed. The question then becomes, what exactly is the percentage of the attending fans are likely to cause problems? In some ways that answer is going to depend on how many of them end up being provoked, and in some ways I see the presence of so many policemen as provocative enough to create some of the problems that we will no doubt see before the day is done.

Still, I hope there are few problems, and hopefully nothing very serious occurs.

Now, let's give the devil, or Sina, his due and take a look at Central. Goalkeeper Jorge Broun has been out with a cruciate ligament injury in his knee, and has missed all of the Clausura. This is good news for us Lepra, as he has been very good during the last few Clasicos, so not having him in goal to stop our strikers from scoring should help matters out. Here, then, is Central's expected lineup:

Hernán Galíndez
Diego Chitzoff, Nahuel Valentini, Diego Braghieri, Santiago García
Jonatan Gómez, Matías Ballini, Mario Paglialunga, Paul Ambrosi
Emilio Zelaya, Milton Caraglio

Having only given up 16 goals in 14 matches scoring against them isn't going to be easy. Thing is they have only scored 8 goals in those matches, having only two wins and a total of 12 points during the Clausura, putting them in 19th place. That being the case, one could think that Newell's are sure to earn three points... but it wasn't that long ago that Central finished a championship dead last, with only one win during the entire 19 game campaign. That win was against Newell's. This is a Clasico, and in a Clasico anything can, and possibly will, happen.

One thing is certain, both teams will go into the match feeling that they need the win. I'm sure that fans on both sides have been on edge all week. Some no doubt are certain their team will win, others have been praying for victory all week long. Until the match is over and done, all we can really do is hope for three points well earned, and no problems in the stands and the streets.

As a Lepra I hope the Sinas have good reason for their silence.

Achucarro In, Torres Out... Maybe

Yesterday I posted a lineup that had been reported as the anticipated Newell's line up for Sunday's Clasico Rosarino against Rosario Central. Later that evening the same source put out a new report, stating that Jorge Achucarro had recovered from his injury and will in fact play, but that there is still some question as to team captain Lucas Bernardi's availability. The new line up they are providing looks like this:

Sebastián Peratta
Agustín Alayes, Rolando Schiavi, Juan Insaurralde
Mauricio Sperduti, Diego Mateo, Lucas Bernardi or Franco Dolci, Leonel Vangioni
Mauro Formica
Cristian Nuñez, Jorge Achucarro

I feel sorry for Diego Torres, if this report is accurate, he played very well in his start against Chacarita Jrs, well enough to earn another start, in my opinion, but Achucarro hasn't done anything to earn a spell on the bench so... I only wish we had that kind of depth in midfield. If Bernardi can't play, any of the players who could replace him really can't be blamed for not being as good as he is, but it would nice if we had someone close to being able to do so.

The fact that my source has Dolci listed as the alternative has me scratching my head. Why not Hugo Barrientos, or Raúl Villalba? Who knows, it's not like the list is set in stone. Come kick off there could be several changes.

And if anyone can tell me what has become of Christian Sánchez Prette, don't sit there holding up your hand, give me a shout!

I leave you with some of the sights and sounds of last night's Banderazo:

Newell's Clasico 11

Just a brief note as Newell's expected line up for Sunday's Clasico Rosarino has been announced:

Sebastián Peratta
Agustín Alayes, Rolando Schiavi, Juan Insaurralde
Mauricio Sperduti, Diego Mateo, Lucas Bernardi, Leonel Vangioni
Mauro Formica
Cristián Núñez, Diego Torres

With both Mateo and Bernardi playing in midfield Central should find it difficult going while trying to attack. The back three are solid, though I'm a bit disappointed that Fideleff isn't starting after his fine match against Chacarita. Considering how well Sperduti, Núñez, and Torres worked with each other it's not surprising they're getting the nod.

Mauro Formica hasn't been the same player he was during the Apertura, and he may lost his form during the match against Los Canallas during the Apertura when he blew what appeared to be an easy chance for a game winner in what turned into a 2-2 draw. Hopefully he regains himself on Sunday and makes up for that miss by leading Newell's to victory.

Burying The Undertakers

I really can't bring myself to praise Newell's Old Boys play today, despite a 3-0 victory over Chacarita Jrs. Did the dominate? No, not really, even though Cristian Nuñez scored a brace, and would have had three had it not been for Chacarita defender Franco Coria not tried to block a cross that was headed towards Nuñez, only to put the ball into his own net. I will say that I was impressed with how well Diego Torres played. He combined well with Nuñez and Mauricio Sperdutti, and while he has yet to regain the form he showed during the 2008 Apertura (he went out injured at the end of that campaign, and has just finally worked his way back onto the main roster,) but today he was the best player on the field.

According to the game statistics, Chacarita didn't manage a single shot, while Newell's took eight, four of which were on net (I'm assuming that Coria's own goal does not count towards Newell's shot total, though I may be wrong.)

That's not to say that Newell's keeper Peratta didn't have moments, collecting several crosses, and there were a few fouls just out side of Newell's area where a better team than Los Funebreros (the Undertakers) would have certainly created some tension... but this Chacarita team showed why they are destined for a short stay in the National A as they never mustered much of a threat.

Here are the goals from the match (watch the second one closely, as I'm still not sure if it was Nuñez or Fideleff who buried it):


So, with two wins in a row, it looks like Roberto Sensini won't be losing his job as coach quite yet. He still made a couple of moves that had me scratching my head a bit, like starting Mauro Fórmica. I spotted El Gato holding his hip a couple of times, so the reported minor hip injury may well be what's keeping him from playing at his best, and he is one of the players who will be facing a suspension the next time he sees yellow. A rest might have done him some good.

There was also the substitution Sensini made, Franco Dolci for Lucas Bernardi (45th minute,) Emanuel Dening for Mauro Fórmica (68th,) and Hugo Barrientos for Mauricio Sperdutti (81st.) Dening for Mauro isn't an issue, but the other two seem a bit out of wack. Wouldn't it have made more sense to bring Barrientos in for Bernardi, and Dolci for Sperdutti?

Ah, well. With a 3-0 win, it all looks good, right?

Up next, Newell's head across town to El Gigante de Arroyito to face Rosario Central. Los Canallas are again facing the possibility of relegation, mired in the depths of despair. It will be a pleasure to go into their stadium and take all three points.

Avoiding Risk Of Suspensions

When Chacarita Jrs visit el Estadio Marcelo Bielsa tomorrow they will be facing a Newell's Old Boys team resting many of their top players. It's not that they need the rest, no, no... it's that the following weekends match will be against Los Canallas, Newell's crosstown archrivals Rosario Central.

With that in mind Sensini is giving several players who are on the verge of yellow card suspensions the day off tomorrow. Players who will not start tomorrow's match due to yellow card accumulation are Mauro Fórmica, as he also has a slight hip injury, Diego Mateo, who took several knocks during the River match, and Jorge Achucarro. The only player that will be on the field that will be carrying four yellow cards into the match will be keeper Sebastián Peratta.

Juan Insaurralde and Marcelo Estigarribia will miss the match against Los Funebreros as they both received yellow card suspensions from the win over River.

The expected lineup:

Sebastián Peratta
Agustín Alayes, Rolando Schiavi, Ignacio Fideleff
Mauricio Sperduti, Hernán Villalba, Lucas Bernardi, Cristian Díaz
Diego Torres, Emanuel Dening, Cristian Núñez

I still don't understand the logic in leaving Joaquín Boghossian out of the starting 11, but if Newell's win, I won't complain.

Gracias, Newell's. Gracias, Achucarro.

I'm marking this date down, the 7th of April, 2010, Newell's Old Boys beat River Plate at El Monumental on my Birthday!

Now normally I would write up my thoughts of the match, but I'm gonna keep it short tonight. It's hard to tell if Newell's played well, or if River are simply so bad that even a struggling team can waltz into their stadium and come away with three points.

Jorge Achucarro scored the lone goal in the 51st minute. I don't know who came up with this particular goal celebration (pictured above,) but I call it "kissing the baby." The goal it's self was a bit lucky, as Achu's first shot rebound off a defender, but Jorge was there to flick the ball over keeper Daniel Vega's fingers and into the net.


Mauro Fórmica had a solid game. Pictured above is a foul that he drew in the second half, resulting in a yellow card for the River player's effort. Later in the match Ariel Ortega, the drunken little donkey making his first appearance for River in some time, would also receive a yellow card for fouling Mauro, with a pull of the jersey that could have easily been spotted from the highest seat in the stands, with or with out binoculars.

Joaquín Boghossian didn't start, but did come on in the second half. He looked better than he has of late, and narrowly missed an opportunity that Fórmica threaded into River's penalty area for him. If Bogho can keep getting that kind of service in front of goal he's bound to start scoring again. Below Joaquin is brought down by two River players, one of which kicked the big man in the face. The announcers called it an accident, I call it a mugging.

And, of course, here's the video of the goal: