The selección took most of the headlines this weekend, of course, but a few other things were happening. Boca manager Miguel Russo talked of his ‘optimism’ going into the final rounds of the Apertura, River Plate have lost one of their forwards to injury on international duty, and Almirante Brown have announced their intentions to challenge at the top of B Nacional.
Russo is talking the talk, insisting that ‘what I’m thinking of the least is any form of frustration,’ and looking on the bright side of life, despite a final three matches in which they’ll play Copa Sudamericana finalists (but struggling in the league) Arsenal, and championship contenders Tigre and Lanús. The Lanús match has been re-arranged so that it’ll now be Boca’s (and of course Lanús’s) final match of the Apertura.
River, meanwhile, may not be playing for anything now, but still have a frustrating end to the campaign ahead of them, and the feeling of gloom (well, perhaps it’s optimism for some who wanted Passarella out) hasn’t been helped by news that Colombian forward Radamel Falcao García has suffered a pulled muscle in his right leg during his country’s World Cup qualifier against Venezuela on Saturday. Colombia won 1-0 with a last minute free kick from Rubén Bustos, but Falcao’s injury puts a cloud on things for both his club and his nation. He may be alright to face Argentina in two days’ time, but the seriousness of the injury has yet to be assessed.
And the big match in B Nacional took place on Sunday, Almirante Brown hosting leaders San Martín de Tucumán, and beating them 2-0 with first half goals from Gonzalo Peralta and Leonardo Zarosa. The hosts had to play with ten men for most of the match after defender Alejandro Verón was sent off before the break. Brown move up to third in the division, just three points behind San Martín, who still lead. Between the two are Quilmes.
And finally, Argentina’s squad have landed in Bogotá ahead of Tuesday’s qualifier. Not much of a headline, that, is it?
Hasta El Gol Siempre 