Campeon Torneo Final 2013. To Whom Goes The Credit?

It has been far too long since I visited these pages and written a single word about my beloved Newell's Old Boys. It has been far too long since we last claimed a title. The later was fixed mid-week when Lanús handed Newell's the Torneo Final 2013 title by losing to Estudiantes 2-0, but we do not owe them any thanks. I wish they could have won that game, so that La Lepra could have won the title tomorrow by beating Argentinos Juniors at home. Now that final game will be one big party, but it would have been far wilder, far more enjoyable had we claimed the title on the field.

 

Newell's Old Boys - Official Wallpapers

So who is owed the thanks for this championship? Some will say the return of Ingnacio Scocco, Maxi Rodriguez, and Gabriel Heinze was the key to the victory. Each had there part to play, it's true, but was that truly the key to our success?

Nacho for all his goals he certainly is significant. But when Super Scocco, as I took to calling him on Twitter, was rested for the Copa Libertadores (a front we are still fighting on) it was Maxi Urruti that stepped up mostly coming on as a late substitute.

La Fiera Rodriguez was certainly a force to be dealt with. Minor injuries and being rested for the Copa gave room for the likes of Victor Figueroa and Martin Tonso to step in and have their moments of glory.

Same thing can be said about El Gringo Heinze. In the matches he missed it was up to the rest of the defense to make up for the hole his absence left, with Victor López and Guillermo Ortiz taking his place.

Some will say that it was Tata Martino as coach that made the difference, and certainly he had a huge influence on this team. Fielding a team that was often said to be a 4-5-1 formation, it more often looked like they were in an old school 4-3-3, the formation that was used by the first group of Leprosos to claim a title. While other teams that were playing in both the Torneo and the Libertadores concentrated on the Copa at the expense of the league, Tata rotated players so that, having claimed the domestic title, we could see the team claim a double. Or, it could be claimed a double should we beat the Torneo Initial champions Vélez Sarsfield on June 29 in Mendoza. (It is only a game played for pride, as AFA now have backed away from the original plan of this one game crowning one single champion for the 2012/2013 season.)

Pablo Perez was a huge factor on the right side of midfield. Early on Fabián Muñoz made his mark before sadly going down to injury. The Peruvian international Rinaldo Cruzado did not play often, but certainly had an impact.

All three of our defensive midfielders played their part. Lucas Bernardi has been as good as he as ever been. Hernán Villalba almost made us forget that Bernardi was serving a suspension early on, but sadly was not available due to injury for the rest of the season. Diego Mateo filled in when needed.

The play of goalkeeper Nahuel Guzmán has gotten stronger with every game he has played. Certainly he has some credit for Newell's winning the title. His back up, Sebastián Peratta, he whom I still call San Peratta filled in and put in his usual solid performance in a number of games.

So who gets the credit for winning this title? No one, but every one. Every player, Martino and all of his coaching staff, the grounds keepers and the fans. No one deserves to not take some credit for this achievement. May this be the beginning of a new golden age for the team.

Dale Newell's! Dale La Lepra! Dale Campeon!

Now let's see about lifting that Libertadores trophy, shall we?

A Sense Of History

Newell's have won a few and lost a few games since I last posted here. Anyone who really cares knows what happened in those games, and I think that may be a part of why I haven't been writing as much. I feel into a trap of reporting match score, rather than talking about my passion.

Today, something happened that spurred my passion. Today I was browsing through a futbol forum when I came across a posting in the Argentina History and Idols thread that required me to respond. The conversation was about the sense of history the Argentine people have for the sport, along with their neighbors in Uruguay, and their perpetual rivals in England. Someone used Rosario Central fans celebrating a goal scored by Aldo Poy against Newell's Old Boys some 40 years ago as an example of this...

Poy? You want to talk about a goal worthy of celebration between Newell's and Central? Let's talk Mario Zanabria's goal against Central in 1974 which gave Newell's their first championship. I was not there to see it. We left Argentina to return to the USA mere months before it happened. Thankfully footage has been found, and while the quality is not the best, I can now say I have seen the most significant goal in Lepra history.

Sadly, the USA has absolutely no sense of history for the sport, or very little at best. There were a number of professional leagues back in the 1920, I believe it was, but they faltered. NASL came and went. MLS looks to stable, but it will be decades before it will really take hold, if it ever does.

By heritage my family is Welsh (though some of my siblings will argue we're English), a country where Rugby is king. The Welsh league only has one pro team. I'm sure there are a few fans who have a sense for the game's history there, but nothing like Argentina, Uruguay and England. I'm sure that just about every nation where futbol is the main if not only sport will claim to have that feel of the history. On an individual fan basis I'm sure it's true... but on a National level?

I consider myself lucky to have spent the 3 1/2 years in Argentina during my youth. It infected me with a love for the sport, and of course for Newell's. Had my father's job taken him to any other country? Who knows if I would have gained this passion.

Newell's Old Boys Earn Place In 2013 Libertadores

I had the day off, having scheduled my final floating holiday for the year a few months ago. When I saw that Newell's Old Boys were playing today I was all set to sit down and watch the game. For the first half, it was not meant to be. The channels through which I normally watch had Newcastle United playing Wigan in the English Premier League, a rebroadcast Boca Jrs match, and an Argentine highlight show, but no Newell's against At. Rafaela. I asked for a few via a tweet (twitter post, for those who do not know) and soon had a link... but I did not have the proper plug-ins to run the video via the website. Nothing was going my way.

So, I watched the first half of Newcastle and Wigan... on TV, no internet needed, and kept track of the Newell's match via Twitter, and checked out the first goal by way of Ole. Fabián Muñoz scored his first goal of the season in the first minute of the match to give Newell's a 1-0 lead. And that is how the first half ended.

At half time I took a break to take a shower, I'd spent the day doing some cleaning up around the house and really needed one. When I got back to the computer I again checked my usual sources for futbol feeds and found that yes indeed someone was showing the match. I loaded it up and found they were fifteen minutes into the second half, and Muñoz had scored his second goal of the day. Meanwhile, I still had Newcastle and Wigan going on the television. When Newcastle took a 3-0 lead my gut told me that Newell's were going to get a third as well. I put it off as wishful thinking...

And then, in the 84th minute Muño, the man of the match, sent a ball toVíctor Figueroa who launched a looping ball that set Ignacio Scocco with only the goalkeeper to beat. Scocco scored and Newell's ended the day with a win that sends them into the 2013 Copa Libertadores in style.



With only one game left Newell's find themselves in a three way tie for second place along side Lanús and Belgrano with 33 points. There is no longer a chance at a title as Vélez Sarsfield claimed that with a 2-0 win yesterday against a hapless Unión de Santa Fe.

Final match for La Lepra will be next weekend away to Argentinos Jrs.

All Boys Hand Old Boys 1st Loss Of Season

So much for the unbeaten run as All Boys discovered the formula to beat Newell's Old Boys. First, score early, as Jonathan Ferrari gave the visitors the 1-0 lead in the 11th minute. Second, start taking out Newell's key veteran players, as first Maxi Rodriguez (Víctor Figueroa came on for him in the 17th minute,) then Gabriel Heinze (Víctor López on for him in the 38th.) and finally it was Lucas Bernardi (Maximiliano Urruti for him in the 55th) all left the game due to injuries. Hopefully, none of them will be out long, but we'll see what the medical reports say on that later.

Once all that was settled, Newell's goalie, Nahuel Guzmán, took down an opposing player midway through the second half after a mad scramble to award All Boys a penalty, and receiving a yellow card in the process. Mauro Matos converted and Newell's were down 2-0 at home. Newell's drew one back thanks to a late goal from Pablo Perez, but even with 7 minutes of extra time in the second half was not enough for La Lepra to manage to draw level.



The good news is that while Newell's lost to All Boys, Vélez Sarsfield also lost at home, 1-0 against Boca Juniors.

Oh, right... I did not get around to talking about the previous two matches, which saw Vélez take over first place. Not much to say, really, both Newell's games ended in 0-0 draws, first to Quilmes at home, then on the road against Boca Juniors.

Problem: Lanús are tied with Newell's at the moment with 29 point (Vélez have 32,) but will be facing Belgrano tomorrow. If Belgrano they will join the congestion in second place with Newell's and Lanús, if Lanús win they will be tied for first with Vélez. Not sure what out come would benefit Newell's most at the moment, even a draw really does not suit me... isn't there a way where both teams lose?

No?

Ah, right.. Belgrano also have a mythical additional game that is yet to be settled there match with Independiente was suspended with Belgrano in front 1-0.

And Racing Club play tomorrow, and are also with in reach of the congestion in second place

Where once things were looking fairly simple, it is now very complex.

Up next Newell's have a short trip as they will be facing Unión. Should be an easy match, as Unión have only managed five points from sixteen matches... but at this point I am not going to make any bets.

It will also be interesting to see if Unión fans will be facing any punishment for their behavior during their 2-0 lost in their clasico against Colón. That match had to be stopped twice due to security (read, police at the grounds) having to deal with people in the Unión stands acting like idiots.


Thank you again Guillermo Lorente for doing your best to eliminate such behavior from our stands!

Two Points Tossed To The Wind

Sunday afternoon Newell's Old Boys went to Mendoza in first place tied with Vélez Sarsfield. At the end of the day their 1-1 draw with hosts Godoy Cruz gave them a one point lead in the standings, and for that I am happy. The way we tossed away what should have been a win, however, has me disappointed. I'm not the only feeling that way, either. Newell's coach Gerardo Martino expressed his feelings about the game known, and he was far from happy with the way we let this one slip away.

Newell's were up 1-0 at half time from a brilliant 10th minute goal from league leader Ignacio Scocco, with his 9th of the year. We also had a man advantage after Jorge Curbelo was red carded from a vicious foul on Maxi Rodriguez in the 41st minute. Had we kept playing the way we had in the first half victory would have been relatively easy. That was not to pass.

In the second half Newell's played poorly, letting more room than a team down a man should have had. In the 79th minute Nahuel Guzmán made a poor save on a shot taken by Alexis Castro just inside the penalty area. The ensuing rebound was pounced on by Mauro Obolo. There was little that Guzmán could have done at that point, but I am left wondering, as well as Guzmán has played, why Sebastián Peratta is still sitting on the bench.



Up next, Newell's will be hosting Quilmes on Friday. Due to the kick off time of the match, I will probably miss most of it, if not all.

Super Scocco Nets Two

Had a friend come over an hour before Newell's Old Boys and Arsenal de Sarandí and we spent a few hours watching cheap horror films in honor of Halloween. Needless to say, that meant I did not see La Lepra take a 2-1 victory from the visitors off a stunning brace from Ignacio Scocco to remain in first place. It also gives Newell's super scorer eight goals on the season putting him on top of the individual scorer race.

As I write Vélez Sarsfield have taken over second place from Racing Club as they are playing each other. Vélez are up 1-0 at home with about twenty minutes to go.

Here's to Racing coming up with the tie. That would pad Newell's lead.

Getting back to Newell's, we had a player take a red card. One source I have lists Gabriel Heinze facing a suspension, while another says it was Victor Figueroa. Checked a third source and looks like it was Heinze. May just have been a second yellow, anyone able to fill me in, please do.

Up next Newell's travel to Mendoza to face Godoy Cruz.

Away Draw To 2nd Place Racing Keeps Newell's In 1st

What can I say about yesterday's 0-0 draw between Racing Club and Newell's Old Boys that has not already been said? Yes, the point earned keeps Newell's on top, and unbeaten. No, it was not the prettiest of games. One of the prime reasons for that was poor officiating. Patricio Loustau should be forced to watch the full footage of this match and be ashamed.

Since we are some twenty hours after the fact, I don't remember everything that happened, but in the 83rd minute Racing's Mauro Camoranesi  fouled Newell's Gabriel Heinze warrented a red card. Camoranesi  went studs first into Heinze's shin, and while I understand that studs first isn't anywhere in the referee's handbook, this certainly was a dangerous tackle, and came no where near to touching the ball. Apparently the referee forgot to bring his red card, and the Racing midfielder walked away with only a yellow.

If you watch the highlight video above you will see Newell's coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino turn to Racing Clubs bench in disbelief. Even with out hearing what he is saying one can tell that he was sharing a moment with Luis Zubeldia, his counter part on Racing's bench. I imagine it went something like this:

Tata: "Unbelievable... that isn't a red card?"
Zubeldia: "What? You blaming me for this?"
Tata: "No... no, no, no. We are both suffering under Loustau."

What that footage doesn't include was the fouls that didn't even get called. Not claiming favoritism, either, as the referee was missing calls both ways. In total he called 14 fouls, 8 against Newell's, and gave out 7 yellow cards. In my estimation the total could have been as high as 20 fouls. Of course, if Loustau had started out making all the calls he should have been making from the start the totals probably would have been the same.

Still, I would not put him in the same category as some of the other referees I have had issues with over the years. But that does not mean I will be looking forward to the next time he officiates a match that Newell's are involved with either.

Up next Newell's are back home to face Arsenal de Sarandí, game time is scheduled for Saturday, October 27th at 6:15 PM local time.

Maxi Scores His First Since Returning To Newell's

In my last post about Newell's Old Boys I wondered why Maxi Rodriguez had not scored since his return to the club. After nine games all the goals seemed to be coming from Ignacio Scocco, and I stated that we needed to spend less time trying to set up Nacho so that our opponents would give him more room. It did not take long for that to be resolved...

In Sunday's match Scocco turned provider, and from his near perfect cross Maxi scored his first goal of the season. This all came about with the match barely under way, and that lone goal was enough for Newell's to beat Vélez Sarsfield 1-0 and remain unbeaten for the season.


After ten matches Newell's are still in first place, two points ahead of Racing Club, who had briefly been in first after they had beaten Colón, also 1-0, on  Saturday.

Boca Jrs faded from the top as they lost 3-1 away to Belgrano. As much as that score might be surprising, the least likely of out comes was River Plate beating Godoy Cruz 5-0.

Next week is an off week due to World Cup Qualfiers. After that, Newell's will be facing Racing in a fight for first place...  Newell's has an edge in that as even a draw will see them stay on top.

Newell's Remain Unbeaten

What can I say, it is Wednesday morning and I have yet to say anything about Newell's Old Boys and their 0-0 draw against Tigre. With that single point La Lepra remain in first place, and are still unbeaten on the season. Still, there were things about this game that worry me.

First and foremost is the fact that Tigre are having a terrible season. We should have been able to beat them, easily. Sure, they had home field advantage, but that should not have been a problem. From what I saw the problem was that Newell's constantly looked to set up leading scorer Ignacio Scocco (now tied with former Lepra Iván Borghello) while Tigre focused on him defensively.

In my opinion to remain in first La Lepra need to find more scoring from the rest of the team. It is really a mystery to me that Maxi Rodriguez has yet to score a single goal since his return to the team. He is more than capably of doing so, his career has proved this. So why has he not been able to score now?

Mauricio Sperdutti only has one goal so far this season. He also is capable of more. The same thing can be said about Pablo Pérez. I can not blame Maximiliano Urruti for not scoring, as he has only been used off the bench this season.

Our next match is at home against Vélez Sarsfield. This will not be an easy match, and to win we will need everyone playing at their best... and hopefully we can draw the attention off Super Scocco and get a goal or two from another source.

On Top Of The Table

This afternoon Newell's Old Boys walked into El Cementerio de los Elefantes in second place. Normally playing Colón in Santa Fe one does not expect to win, but after taking a 2-0 lead La Lepra held on for a 2-1 victory which propelled them into first past Boca Juniors. Boca had yet to play at that time, but after they lost 2-0 at Lanus we Lepra will have at least a week in first.



I am going to leave it at that, as it is late and I need to get to bed. I have to work tomorrow, and it has been a rather rough weekend.

Two Days Later...

I did manage to keep half an eye on the 3-3 draw between Newell's Old Boys and River Plate on Sunday, but have not had time to sit down and write about it until now. Half an eye allowed me to see the first two goals from River to come from behind and take a 2-1 lead, and Ignacio Scocco scoring from a penalty to make it 3-2.

All I can really say is thank God for Youtube which let me to see all the goals... and this time around the reason for the penalty that lead to Newell's second goal. I have to admit that it was a rather weak penalty call, but it was, technically, a hand ball in the penalty area.



Even though Newell's only came away with a single point this weekend they are now in second place all alone, just one point behind leaders Boca Juniors. You could say that it was not a good weekend for the teams at the top of the table.

I am very happy that Newell's managed to go into Buenos Aries and take a point off of River. Especially since La Lepra were with out Maxi Rodriguez, who is on a call up with the Albicelestes.

One thing to remember, however, is that there is more than the league standings to worry about. Newell's also have to worry about the Relegation standings. At the moment we are safe, but any slip in form could change that.

Not that I see that happening, mind you. There are too many good players on this team, with a great coach in Gerardo Martino leading the way.

Hoping For More Heroics

Tonight, while Newell's Old Boys face River Plate in Buenos Aries, I will be at a weekly gathering of friends. I may end up taking my laptop and keep half an eye on the game, but my friends will not understand. This is one of the reasons I call myself a Leper In A Strange Land.

Facing River Plate is not going to make for an easy match. Yes, I know this is a River Plate that just returned to the Primera from the B, but they were a different team when they took the drop. Newell's will need to be on top of their game, and one or two players will need to step up their games. Hopefully we will see some more heroics from La Lepra. Hopefully they will not wait until the last minute this time.

Speaking of heroics, here is a couple more of my characters from City Of Heroes. (For those of you reading this as Lepras, please indulge me as I do this... my love for Newell's is not endangered, City of Heroes is.)

Here we have Timelord Tom. Yes, this character is my tribute to Doctor Who. He is a Time Lord who has dismantled his TARDIS and created devices with which to fight crime in the streets of Paragon City. In the game he is a Technology Controler, powers are Gravity Control, Time Manipulation, and Teleport.

Next up is Willowbright. She was the first character I made in City Of Heroes. I say made rather than created as she is based on a character I created and played twice while playing Champions (the pen and paper role playing game, not the online version of the game.) I made her in City Of Heroes as a Natural Blaster, though I suppose I should have really used the Mutant origin. Her powers are Psychic Blast (closest thing I could come to her ranged attack in Champions, which was a No Normal Defense attack,) Energy Manipulation (again, an approximation... in the most recent Champions incarnation of the character she had Density Increase which gave her superhuman strength), Flight, and Concealment. She is my highest level character in City Of Heroes, and is just about to get to 31st level as I write this.

And here we have one Cryptman Jones, a character that was inspired, sort of, by The Shoveler from the Mystery Men movie. He is a Natural Tanker, powers are Willpower, Battle Axe (he hits people with a shovel - yes, there is an option for that in the game,) and Fighting. He is another early character, and the Fighting power probably should have been left off the slate, but it fits the concept of the character... so there it stays.

If you are a fan of super heroes, I would urge you to play City Of Heroes... but at this point? Wait, if the game is saved from oblivion, then give it a shot. Right now I am not even sure that you can download it. In the mean time, please do sign the petition:

Petition to save City Of Heroes

Tough Decisions Ahead

Tomorrow Newell's Old Boys venture to Buenos Aires to face River Plate. This match may well be the first real test for La Lepra in the Torneo Inicial so far. River, just back to the Primera after a season in the B, are off to a decent enough start with two wins and two draws after their first five games.

Newell's, on the other hand, are only a point off the pace set by early leaders Boca Juniors. Three wins and two draws is a great start to the season. Newell's are the only team after five matches to yet concede a goal. If we can survive our sixth and still be able to say that it will be amazing.

What worries me about Newell's however is our lack of goal scoring so far. Five games in, and we have only four goals ourselves. Other worries for Sunday is that defender Marcos Cáceres will be out due to an ankle sprain, and midfielder Maxi Rodriguez will be missing due to being called up to the Albicelestes (Argentine National Team.) That leaves questions as to who coach Gerardo Martino will have playing in their place.

Milton Casco or Cristian Díaz are listed as the possible replacements in defense. With Maxi not available it seems that either Lucas Bernardi will play in midfield in a 4-4-2 formation, or Ignacio Scocco will start with the team shifting to a 4-3-3.

Guzmán; Casco or Díaz, Vergini, López, Heinze; Pérez, Villalba, Bernardi or Scocco, Vangioni; Sperduti, Figueroa

Personally, I'd rather both Bernardi AND Scocco started. Figueroa could easily be dropped to the bench. We will see what happens.

The fans also have some choices to make later this year as the team president Guillermo Lorente will be facing likely candidate Jorge Griffa in elections in December. The two met this week and are reported to have agreed to a "non-aggression" pact. We will see how long that lasts.

It Is Late And So Am I

I have not posted anything in some time... in fact not since the Clausura. Part of the news, which I am sure everyone that cares to know already does, is that the there will no longer be two champions in Argentina, the Apertura and Clausura have been replaced by the Torneo Inicial from the Torneo Final. The leaders from both Torneos will then face off to determine a sole champion for the season... unless, of course, the same team wins both. Not really sure how I feel about that, but I am sure I can get used to it.

Now, we are three games into the Inicial, and Newell's Old Boys are doing quite well. The first match did was not exactly what we wanted to see... a 0-0 home draw with Independiente. The second match was an improvement as Lanús were defeated 1-0 on the road, the goal being scored by Mauricio Sperduti. Sadly, our returning hero Maxi Rodriguez was injured in this match.

The third match, played yesterday at home against San Martín de San Juan, had positive and negative aspects to it. Maxi was missing due to his injury (knee sprain... maybe ready for the following match.) In the 13th minute of the first half Marcos Cáceres scored his first goal for Newell's from a neat little cross from Lucas Bernardi... yes, Bernardi is again showing that he can create chances as well as preventing them.

Seven minutes there after defender Marcos Cáceres received a red card... I was driving home from work, so have not a clue as what happened. In fact I only saw the final ten minutes of the first half, so I also missed Gerardo Martino receiving a red card in the 35th minute and had to leave the bench. Anyone who reads this and can either explain what happened, or has links to videos of the two incidents please let me know! Gabriel Heinze, back at Newell's after only playing 8 matches with the club at the beginning of his career, entered the game in place of Víctor Figueroa to shore up the back line in between the two red cards.

The second half had me biting my finger nails. A one goal lead, down a man, the coach sent off... sure, San Martín is far from the best club in the league, but we also seemed to be facing a referee who was against us. Enter another returning Lepra, Ignacio Scocco. Scocco was part of the last Newell's team to win a championship (Apertura 2004). He showed he knows how to put an exclamation point on a win with Newell's second goal of the match in the 72nd minute when he unleashed a blast from outside the penalty box on the right hand side deep into the upper left hand corner of the net to settle the match at 2-0.

Up next Newell's travel to Córdoba to face Belgrano.

Four Years Of Transformation

Found the following video bouncing around Twitter this morning.  It is a good reminder of what Newell's Old Boys were left with after the years of abuse at the hands of Eduardo Lopez and his lot, and just how much work it took for Guillermo Lorente and his administration to set things right... something that, financially, is an on going mission. New elections are scheduled for December. New candidates are out there. The team has not always been the best, Lorente and those under him have made a few mistakes along the way. But that is how you learn. Hopefully the coming presidential campaigns will not detract form what happens on the field, but how well the team does could well effect the elections. The team must do well this coming season, as they begin the year buried in the fight against relegation. Certainly with Gerardo Martino as coach, and the return of Maxi Rodriguez a glorious season is possible. But only time will tell. Mr. Lorente, your presidency hangs in the balance.

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.

Newell's Fan Shot - Dies At Hospital

The effects of Newell's Old Boys match against Unión de Santa Fe. Lepra are still celebrating being in first place, and we are all now dreaming of taking the title. Well, all but one Sergio Víctor Fernández, a Newell's fan who was shot outside the stadium on his way to catch a bus by a Unión fan. He later died at the hospital. I first learn of this from Fox News Latino.

Watching the video below I also see that some of the Unión "fans" took to trying to destroy parts of stands towards the end of the match. While many teams in Argentina have made efforts to eliminate the violence in the stadiums, others are still marred with administrations that not only let the Barras Bravas have their way, but often hire them for stadium security.

Thank you to Eve Zuttión for posting the following video on Facebook: Newell's president Guillermo Lorente has met with Marcos Escajadillo, who is heading up the investigation into the murder of Fernandez as well as the vandalism inside the stadium. What will come out of that investigation I will not venture to guess. I will be amazed if I end up seeing that bit of news when it hits.

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.