There's very little to say about this one. On Thursday night, the champions of Argentina, who won the Apertura in such thrilling style as recently as December, and whose team is essentially unchanged since then, had a chance to bounce back from the 5-0 annhiliation given them by local rivals Banfield on Saturday. They failed... Continue Reading →
Clausura ’08: Round 5 fixtures
No fewer than four clásicos this weekend, two between 'Big Five' clubs - Racing host San Lorenzo and Independiente visit Boca - one sort-of derby, an all-Santa Fé Province clash between Central and Colón, and a proper derby between two of the clubs from the zona Sur of Gran Buenos Aires, with Banfield visiting champions... Continue Reading →
Nothing to see here…
The first all-Argentine fixture of Copa Libertadores Group 2 was played on Tuesday evening in La Plata, and it wasn't the most thrilling of spectacles. Estudiantes hosted Lanús and, after the high-scoring shenanigans of both sides in the league on Friday, we might have been forgiven for licking our lips in anticipation of a goalfest.... Continue Reading →
Lanús 3 – 1 Danubio
Lanús are the best team in Argentina, don't you know. In case anyone wondered about their ability to challenge for honours again this year, they reminded us of that fact on Thursday night by claiming Argentina's first win in four attempts of the 2008 Copa Libertadores. The visitors to El Sur were Uruguayan quasi-giants Danubio,... Continue Reading →
Clausura ’08: Round 1 scores and scorers
River Plate were the only one of the 'Big Five' to win on the opening weekend of the Clausura, with Racing and Boca both drawing and San Lorenzo and Independiente both crashing to defeats. Carlos Ischia's introduction to competitive action was spoiled by a club he used to manage, as Central proved ungenerous hosts to his... Continue Reading →
Torneo Clausura 2008: The eve of the kick off
The 2008 Torneo Clausura kicks off at long last following the summer break on Friday evening, with Lanús aiming to defend the title they won so improbably back in December, whilst the likes of Boca will be wanting to get back to winning ways. Other big sides need improved performances, for a variety of reasons,... Continue Reading →
Turning it round
League champions Lanús booked their place in the Copa Libertadores group stage on Tuesday night, winning in style against Ecuadorian champs Olmedo to overturn a 1-0 first leg defeat. In the first half, they looked edgy, creating chances but - as in Riobamba last week - not managing to finish them off. In the second,... Continue Reading →
Team news
With just a few days remaining before the 2008 Torneo Clausura begins, some of the sides are still going over their options when it comes to the formations and personnel for their opening matches. No such trouble for Argentina's Olympic manager Sergio Batista, who already seems to know his starting XI for Wednesday's match against Guatemala... Continue Reading →
Falling short
Argentine champions Lanús played their first competitive match of 2008 on Thursday night, away in Ecuadorian city of Riobamba, home of that country's domestic champions, Olmedo. Nearly 2,800 metres above sea level, the Granate struggled, and lost 1-0. Lanús started with a side chosen with the altitude in mind, and set up to attack without taking... Continue Reading →
Another trophy
It's only an invitational tournament, so it doesn't matter in the slightest, but Lanús, it seems, are developing a taste for silverware after claiming their first ever championship last month. On Monday, the Granate won the Copa Ciudad de Buenos Aires without even playing, as Vélez Sársfield beat Estudiantes de La Plata 2-1 in the... Continue Reading →
