Leonel Núñez golazo contra Huracán, Clausura 2011
On 18 June 2011 Huracán faced a tough looking trip to Avellaneda to play Independiente knowing that a win would allow them to avoid automatic relegation. The game did not go well for the visitors who had their goalkeeper sent off, missed a penalty and found themselves 4-1 down going into the last minute when Leonel Núñez scored this cracking individual goal to add a fifth for Independiente. As the final whistle went the Huracán fans were in mourning as their relegation rivals were winning 2-1 against Boca Juniors and about to leapfrog Huracán out of the automatic relegation zone however Cristian Cellay scored a late equaliser for Boca to set up a playoff between Huracán and Gimnasia to determine which of them ends up automatically relegated and which will face Union de Santa Fe in the promotion/relgation playoff.
Fecha 19 Clausura 2011 Argentina
Details of the 19th round of games in the Clausura 2011 tournament.
All of the video highlights are available by scrolling down to the Results section and clicking on the red scores.
Preview
Match reports
On Saturday afternoon the five games involving teams in the relegation fight kicked off simultaneously.
Quilmes had worked miracles to keep their survival hopes alive until the final game of the season but they were relegated after a 0-1 home defeat to Olimpo. Martín Rolle scored the only goal of the game to secure Primera División survival for the Bahía Blanca outfit.
River Plate replaced Olimpo in the final relegation playoff position after a 1-2 home defeat to Lanús who finished the Clausura in second place. Sebastián Romero put the visitors ahead but Erik Lamela equalised for the hosts after three minutes of the second half to give them hope. River Pressed for the winning goal but Leandro Diaz hit an injury time winner for Lanús to leave never previously relegated River facing a two legged promotion playoff against Belgrano de Córdoba to determine which of them will play Primera División football.The fact that River are involved in the relegation playoffs means that they will be disallowed from competing in Copa Sudamerica despite finishing 6th in the overall table.
Given River's defeat, Tigre were safe anyway but they still managed a creditable 1-1 draw at Argentinos Juniors. Nicolás Blandi scored for Argentinos midway through the first half and Román Martínez equalised for Tigre nine minutes later. The draw meant that Argentinos slipped down the table a bit but still finished in 5th position in the Clausura and in 7th position in the Copa Sudamericana qualification table meaning that they will take River Plate's place in Copa Sudamericana 2011.
Huracán started the day above the automatic relegation places by a single point and they seemed set for automatic relegaton as Independiente thrashed them 5-1 and Gimnasia y Esgrima seemed to be heading for a win against Boca Juniors however Boca found a late equaliser to set up a head-to-head decider between Huracán and Gimnasia to determine which of them will face automatic relegation and which of them will face the 3rd placed team from Primera B Nacional, San Martín de San Juan in the promotion/relegation playoff.
Gimnasia seemed to be cruising to victory against Boca after Claudio Graff scored with a free kick and Guillermo Barros Schelotto scored another from the penalty spot after 12 minutes. Cristián Cellay pulled one back for Boca before half time but Gimnasia looked the most likely to score for most of the second half until Boca equalised in the last minute. In his last ever league appearance for Boca, Martín Palermo headed back across goal to set up a second goal for Cellay.
Huracán's trip to Inependiente was nothing short of a disaster considering they knew that a win would allow them to avoid automatic relegation. Facundo Parra and Andrés Silvera put the hosts two goals ahead at half time then Patricio Rodríguez hit a pair of goals either side of the sending off of Huracán keeper Gastón Monzón and a missed penalty from Javier Cámpora. At the second opportunity from the penalty spot Cámpora pulled a goal back and put himself joint top of the topscorers table but there was still time for Leonel Núñez to add further humiliation with a sublime fifth goal for Independiente in the last few minutes.
In the late game on Saturday Nicolás Sánchez headed the only goal of the game to give Godoy Cruz a 1-0 win against All Boys to secure 3rd place in the Clausura, their joint best finish in their short Primera División history.
In the early kick-off on Sunday Estudiantes continued their dismal run of form with a 1-0 away defeat to Arsenal de Sarandí. The champions of the Apertura have won only one of their last 16 games and that was the rearranged tie against bottom of the table Huracán. Despite spending the majority of the season in the bottom half of the table Arsenal picked up 11 points from their final five games to climb up to 10th in the final standings, qualify to play in Copa Sudamericana 2011 and dramatically improve their prospects in next seasons relegation table.
Newell's Old Boys picked up only their 4th victory of the Clausura with a 1-0 home win against Colón meaning that they managed to leapfrog Huracán and avoid the embarrasment of a bottom of the table finish. They left it late to secure the win but Mauricio Sperdutti bagged the winner in the 88th minute to demonstrate that he is of the few Newell's players that can take some pride in their Clausura 2011 campaign.
Banfield and San Lorenzo were the only two teams left with absolutely nothing to play for, their game ended in a 1-1 draw. Banfield have played some half decent football in the Clausura and Gustavo Toledo gave them the lead with a spectacular long range strike but San Lorenzo managed to scramble an equaliser to avoid finishing a disappointing campaign with a defeat.
Vélez Sársfield enjoyed their coronation as champions with a 2-1 win againsr Racing Club a result that secured a comfortable 4 point margain in the Clausura and an incredible 13 point advantage over the whole of the 2010-11 season. Nobody could deny that Vélez deserved their championship but Racing attempted to spoil the party taking the lead with a Gabriel Hauche goal in the early stages of the game. Vélez fought back and had established the 2-1 lead that lasted for the rest of the game after 19 minutes with goals from Víctor Zapata and Augusto Fernández.
Results
| 18-06-11 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Argentinos Juniors | 1-1 | Tigre |
| Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) | 2-2 | Boca Juniors |
| Independiente | 5-1 | Huracán |
Quilmes | 0-1 | Olimpo |
| River Plate | 1-2 | Lanús |
| Godoy Cruz | 1-0 | All Boys |
| 19-06-11 | ||
| Arsenal | 1-0 | Estudiantes |
| Newell's Old Boys | 1-0 | Colón |
| Banfield | 1-1 | San Lorenzo |
| Vélez Sársfield | 2-1 | Racing Club |
Positions
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vélez Sársfield | 19 | 12 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 17 | +19 | 39 | |
| 2 | Lanús | 19 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 28 | 15 | +13 | 35 | |
| 3 | Godoy Cruz | 19 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 33 | 28 | +5 | 34 | |
| 4 | Olimpo | 19 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 28 | 23 | +5 | 30 | |
| 5 | Argentinos Juniors | 19 | 7 | 9 | 3 | 16 | 11 | +5 | 30 | |
| 6 | Independiente | 19 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 30 | 20 | +10 | 29 | |
| 7 | Boca Juniors | 19 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 24 | 22 | +2 | 28 | |
| 8 | Banfield | 19 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 24 | 24 | 0 | 27 | |
| 9 | River Plate | 19 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 26 | |
| 10 | Arsenal | 19 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 25 | 22 | +3 | 25 | |
| 11 | Tigre | 19 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 25 | 26 | −1 | 25 | |
| 12 | All Boys | 19 | 7 | 4 | 8 | 14 | 19 | −5 | 25 | |
| 13 | San Lorenzo | 19 | 5 | 8 | 6 | 19 | 17 | +2 | 23 | |
| 14 | Estudiantes | 19 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 18 | 19 | −1 | 24 | |
| 15 | Racing | 19 | 7 | 2 | 10 | 25 | 26 | −1 | 23 | |
| 16 | Colón | 19 | 6 | 3 | 10 | 20 | 27 | −7 | 21 | |
| 17 | Quilmes | 19 | 5 | 5 | 9 | 24 | 27 | −3 | 20 | |
| 18 | Gimnasia (La Plata) | 19 | 3 | 9 | 7 | 19 | 25 | −6 | 18 | |
| 19 | Newell's Old Boys | 19 | 4 | 4 | 11 | 16 | 32 | −16 | 16 | |
| 20 | Huracán | 19 | 3 | 5 | 11 | 18 | 42 | −24 | 14 |
Show de goles
For more South American football highlights, including the Brazilian league, the pick of the rest and international tournaments:
Fecha 19 Clausura 2011 - Preview and predictions
Preview and predictions for the 19th round of games in the Clausura 2011 tournament.
Preview
Last week I correctly predicted 4 results but didn't get any exact scores. This week I am really pressed for time and the relegation situation is so complex to explain that for the final round of Clausura 2011 I'm going to have a bit of fun and just run with my gut instinct and what I would like to happen rather than doing all the usual meticulous research.
The first five games all involve teams battling to avoid relegation and kick off simultaneously on Saturday afternoon.
There are two seperate battles the most important is the fight to avoid automatic relegation and only one of three teams can avoid it by finishing in a relegation playoff position meaning that they will face a two legged tie against the 3rd placed team in Primera B Nacional (San Martín de San Juan).
Quilmes are bottom of the pile but having failed to win any of their first 9 games in the Clausura they have pulled off an extraordianry recovery to give themselves a chance of avoiding automatic relegation but they still need to beat Olimpo to have any chance of survival. Quilmes also rely on the other two teams failing to win their games. Gimnasia have a home tie against Boca Juniors, which will be the final game for legandary striker Martín Palermo, Gimnasia will survive if they win and the other two don't, they could also survive if they draw and the other two lose given their superior goal average to Huracán. Huracán face a trip to Avellaneda to face Independiente, if they win they will avoid automatic relegation whatever else happens. If they match or better the results of the others they will also survive however if they draw and Quilmes win they will finish on the same points average and face a playoff to determine which team finishes in the higher position.
There are three teams involved in the battle to avoid the last relegation playoff position which would mean a two legged tie against the 4th placed team in Primera B Nacional, Belgrano de Córdoba. As with the automatic relegation fight the three involved teams could finish level on points average. Olimpo need to beat Quilmes to have any chance of avoiding the playoff and if they do a win for River Plate against Lanús and a draw for Tigre at Argentinos Juniors would mean that the three teams all finish level on points average and a three way playoff to determine which team finishes where.
If Tigre win, equal or better the results of the other two they will certainly survive however if they lose and the other two win they will face the playoff. If River Plate better the result of Olimpo they will survive, if both River and Olimpo draw River will survive however if they both win it will go down to a playoff.
The last game on Saturday will provide the opportunity for Godoy Cruz to secure a top three finish with a win against All Boys. If they win and Lanús don't they could secure 2nd place their best ever finish in the Primera División.
On Sunday Arsenal and Estudiantes play in the early kick-off. There has not been a draw in this fixture since 2005 so I'm going to back the stalemate.
Newell's could avoid an embarassing bottom of the table finsh if they manage to better Huracán's result in their game against Colón.
Banfield have been inconsistent for the whole of the Clausura however this is clearly better than having been consistently bad like San Lorenzo. I'd be surprised if Banfield ddn't comfortably beat San Lorenzo in their last game of the season.
The last game of the championship will be the champoins Vélez against Racing. It should be an entertaining game Vélez will want to put on a good show in front of their supporters and if Racing bother to turn up and play football like they occasionally have in the Clausura it could be a cracking game.
Predictions
As the results come in I will fill in the actual scores and colour code the predicted scores, green for exact score, yellow for correct result and red for completely wrong. Each green score gets three points, each yellow score gets one point and red scores get nothing. If you fancy playing along fill out your predictions in the comments below to see if you can beat mine.
| 18-06-11 | Prediction | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Argentinos Juniors | 1-1 | Tigre | 1-0 |
| Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) | 2-2 | Boca Juniors | 1-1 |
| Quilmes | 0-1 | Olimpo | 2-0 |
| River Plate | 1-2 | Lanús | 1-1 |
| Independiente | 5-1 | Huracán | 2-0 |
| Godoy Cruz | 1-0 | All Boys | 3-1 |
| 19-06-11 | |||
| Arsenal | 1-0 | Estudiantes | 0-0 |
| Newell's Old Boys | 1-0 | Colón | 1-1 |
| Banfield | 1-1 | San Lorenzo | 2-0 |
| Vélez Sársfield | 2-1 | Racing Club | 3-2 |
Score:4/10
2011 Copa Libertadores final
Overview
The Copa Libertadores final in 2011 featured two of the famous names from the early years of the competition. Brazilian side Santos won the Libertadores in 1962 and 1963 and Peñarol from Uruguay won the competition five times between 1960 and 1987 making them the third most successful side in the history of the competition despite the fact that 2011 is the first time they have even passed the quarter-final stage since they last won the competition 24 years previously.
Results
| 15-06-11 | ||
|---|---|---|
Peñarol  | 0-0 | Santos  |
| 22-06-11 | ||
| Santos | 2-1 | Peñarol |
| Winner: Santos | ||
After a 0-0 draw in the first leg the Copa Libertadores final went down to the final game at the Estádio do Pacaembu in São Paulo, making the Brazilian side strong favourites to win the title given the fact that Peñarol had not won any of their four previous games. Brazilian teenage sensation Neymar scored the first goal of the final two minutes into the second half and Danilo extended the lead in the 69th minute. Peñarol pulled a goal back with ten minutes left through a Dorival goal however they couldn't prevent the Santos from winning their third Copa Libertadores title and their first since they won the tournament back-to-back in 1962 & 1963. The celebrations were spoiled after a mass brawl where the Peñarol players faced up to the Santos players, coaching staff and a number of Santos fans who had invaded the pitch.
For more South American football highlights, including the Argentine & Brazilian leagues, the pick of the rest and other international tournaments:
Brasileirão Série A 2011 - round 4
Match reports
The fourth round of games was strewn with drawn matches with six of the ten games resulting in ties. Bottom club Avaí picked up their first points of the season with a 2-2 home draw against América and Atlético Paranaense fount their first point and goal of the tournament in a 1-1 home draw with unbeaten Flamengo.
The bottom four stayed exactly the same as the other two clubs also drew their games Bahia managed a 1-1 draw against Atlético Mineiro and Cruzeiro who have not won in 4 games will be disappointed with with a 1-1 draw against Santos having conceded a last minute equaliser against their 10 man opponents.
Vasco da Gama recovered from their mauling in round 3 with a 1-1 draw against Figuirense and Internacional and Palmeiras shared the spoils after an entertaining 2-2 draw.
The top two sides were two of the four sides to win their games. São Paulo kept their 100% record with a 3-1 win against Grêmio while Corinthians kept up the chase with a 2-0 win against Fluminense.
Botafogo climbed seven places with their 3-1 win against Coritiba and Atlético Goianense came back from a goal behind to record a resounding 4-1 win against Ceará.
Results/Highlights
| 11-06-11 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Avaí | 2-2 | Américo Mineiro |
| Cruzeiro | 1-1 | Santos |
| São Paulo | 3-1 | Grêmio |
| Vasco da Gama | 1-1 | Figueirense |
| 12-06-11 | ||
| Bahia | 1-1 | Atlético Mineiro |
| Atlético Goianense | 4-1 | Ceará |
| Internacional | 2-2 | Palmeiras |
| Corinthians | 2-0 | Fluminense |
| Atlético Paranaense | 1-1 | Flamengo |
| Botofogo | 3-1 | Coritiba |
Positions
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | São Paulo | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | +6 | 12 | |
| 2 | Corinthians | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 10 | |
| 3 | Palmeiras | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 8 | |
| 4 | Atlético Mineiro | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 7 | |
| 5 | Botafogo | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 4 | +2 | 7 | |
| 6 | Figueirense | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 7 | |
| 7 | Vasco da Gama | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 7 | +1 | 7 | |
| 8 | Flamengo | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 6 | |
| 9 | Atlético Goianiense | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 6 | |
| 10 | Grêmio | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 6 | |
| 11 | Fluminense | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | −2 | 6 | |
| 12 | Internacional | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 6 | +1 | 5 | |
| 13 | Santos | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 5 | |
| 14 | Ceará | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 9 | −4 | 4 | |
| 15 | América Mineiro | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 10 | −4 | 4 | |
| 16 | Coritiba | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 3 | |
| 17 | Bahia | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 8 | −3 | 2 | |
| 18 | Cruzeiro | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | −2 | 2 | |
| 19 | Atlético Paranaense | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 6 | −5 | 1 | |
| 20 | Avaí | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 12 | −8 | 1 |
For more South American football highlights, including the Argentine league, the pick of the rest and international tournaments:
Fecha 18 Clausura 2011 Argentina
Details of the 18th round of games in the Clausura 2011 tournament.
All of the video highlights are available by scrolling down to the Results section and clicking on the red scores.
Preview
Match reports
 |
| Legendary Boca Juniors striker Martín Palermo was given an emotional sendoff after his final home game at the Bombonera. |
In the early kick off on Saturday Arsenal (the team with the 3rd worst away record) faced a trip to Santa Fe to play Colón (the team with the worst home record). Arsenal managed to bag the win they needed in order to secure Primera División survival through a solitary goal from Gustavo Blanco in first half stoppage time.
In the next game Quilmes secured the win at San Lorenzo that they needed in order to keep alive their slim chances of surviving automatic relegation. The main advantage they had was that they were highly motivated to get the result while San Lorenzo have been drifting aimlessly towards the end of the season. Francisco Cerro put the visitors ahead early in the first half and Martín Cuateruccio scored a second late in the game to give Quilmes a vital 0-2 win. However it will all be in vain if either Gimnasia or Huracán manage to win any of their remaining games.
All Boys are sure to be playing Primera División football next season unlike their opponents Gimnaisa y Esgrima de La Plata who remain in the automatic relegation zone after a 1-0 defeat at All Boys. Emmanuel Giggliotti scored the only goal of the game to leave Gimnasia hoping that Huracán don't win either of their remaining games and needing to beat Boca Juniors in their final game.
Tigre are one of the three remaining teams in the fight to avoid the last relegation playoff position after they could only manage a 0-0 draw against Independiente.
In the early kick-off on Sunday Vélez Sarsfield took a step closer to the Clausura 2011 championship with a 0-2 away win at relegation threatened Huracán. Santiago Silva put Vélez ahead early in the second half, both sides had a player sent off with a quarter of an hour to go and Davíd Ramírez scored an injury time penalty to polish the scoreline.
The win for Vélez meant that Lanús needed to avoid defeat at home against Argentinos Juniors in order to take the championship race into the final round of games however they contrived to lose 0-1 to hand the title to Vélez. It was an anticlimactic end to the championship race but nobody could claim that Vélez do not deserve to win the championship.
River Plate are still embroiled in the fight to avoid finishing in the last relegation playoff position after they could only manage a 1-1 draw against an Estudiantes side that have now gone 8 home games without a win. Pablo Ferarri put River ahead early in the second half but Matías Sarulyte equalised for the home team a few minutes later.
The late game on Sunday was an emotional occasion for Boca Juniors' legendary striker Martín Palermo and the fans as the all time topscorer for the club played his final home game at the Bombonera. Unfortunately he did not manage to bag a goal and visitors Banfield came away with a point after a 1-1 draw. The fans stayed after the game to give Palermo a grand sendoff with fireworks and a lap of honour in front of a packed Bombonera. Palermo has taken a lot of bitter criticism from opposition fans for his robust playing style however the fact that so many of them are now openly celebrating his retirement illustrate the fact that in reality they view the man with fear rather than contempt.
The last game of the round was an entertaining encounter between Racing Club and Godoy Cruz at "el coliseo". Teó Gutíerrez scored twice in the opening half hour to give Racing a comfortable two goal advantage and to move into pole position in the Clausura 2011 top scorers chart with 11 but Mariano Donda pulled one back for Godoy Cruz before half time. In the second half Ariel Rojas baffled his way through the Racing defence and crossed to provide an unmissable opportunity for Rúben Ramírez to equalise and then late in the game a catastrophic mmisunderstanding between Racing goalkeeper Roberto Fernández and defender Iván Pillud presented Mariano Donda with a penalty which he scored to give "el tomba" a 2-3 victory and their first ever primera División away win against Racing.
Results
| 30-05-11 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Olimpo | 1-1 | Newell's Old Boys |
| 28-05-11 | ||
| Colón | 0-1 | Arsenal |
| San Lorenzo | 0-2 | Quilmes |
| All Boys | 1-0 | Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) |
| Tigre | 0-0 | Independiente |
| 29-05-11 | ||
| Huracán | 0-2 | Vélez Sársfield |
| Estudiantes | 1-1 | River Plate |
| Lanús | 0-1 | Argentinos Juniors |
| Boca Juniors | 1-1 | Banfield |
| 30-05-11 | ||
| Racing Club | 2-3 | Godoy Cruz |
Positions
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vélez Sársfield | 18 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 34 | 16 | +18 | 36 | |
| 2 | Lanús | 18 | 9 | 5 | 4 | 26 | 14 | +12 | 32 | |
| 4 | Godoy Cruz | 18 | 9 | 4 | 5 | 32 | 28 | +4 | 31 | |
| 3 | Argentinos Juniors | 18 | 7 | 8 | 3 | 15 | 10 | +5 | 29 | |
| 5 | Olimpo | 18 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 27 | 23 | +4 | 27 | |
| 6 | Boca Juniors | 18 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 22 | 20 | +2 | 27 | |
| 7 | Independiente | 18 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 25 | 19 | +6 | 26 | |
| 8 | River Plate | 18 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 14 | 13 | +1 | 26 | |
| 9 | Banfield | 18 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 23 | 23 | 0 | 26 | |
| 10 | All Boys | 18 | 7 | 4 | 7 | 14 | 18 | −4 | 25 | |
| 11 | Estudiantes | 18 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 18 | 18 | 0 | 24 | |
| 12 | Tigre | 18 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 24 | 25 | −1 | 24 | |
| 13 | Racing | 18 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 24 | 24 | 0 | 23 | |
| 14 | Arsenal | 18 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 24 | 22 | +2 | 22 | |
| 15 | San Lorenzo | 17 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 18 | 16 | +2 | 21 | |
| 16 | Colón | 18 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 20 | 26 | −6 | 21 | |
| 17 | Quilmes | 18 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 24 | 26 | −2 | 20 | |
| 18 | Gimnasia (La Plata) | 18 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 17 | 23 | −6 | 17 | |
| 19 | Huracán | 18 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 17 | 37 | −20 | 14 | |
| 20 | Newell's Old Boys | 17 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 15 | 32 | −17 | 12 |
Show de goles
For more South American football highlights, including the Brazilian league, the pick of the rest and international tournaments:
Fecha 18 Clausura 2011 - Preview and predictions
Preview and predictions for the 18th round of games in the Clausura 2011 tournament.
Preview
Last week I broke my long run of not predicting any correct scores with a remarkable 5 correct scores out of 9 games, with another correct result my score of 16 points is by far my best attempt yet.
The first game of the round will be bottom of the table Newell's Old Boys visit to Olimpo. The outcome could have huge consequences in the relegation table, especially if Olimpo manage to win. The stats seem to support the case for a home win with Newell's having only won 1 of their last 18 away games in all competitions and their record in Bahía Blanca is nothing to write home about either having recorded just one victory in their six previous attempts.
The first of Saturday's games features the team with the worst home record in the division facing the team with the 3rd worst away record. Arsenal have only won one of their 8 previous Primera División games against Colón in Santa Fe but Colón have only managed one win and one draw in their last 8 home games. I have a gut feeling that Colón's legendary striker Esteban Fuertes to bag the decisive goal in this game.
The next game is the decisive encounter for Quilmes, without an away win against San Lorenzo they will be relegated from the Primera División. Although Quilmes have lost their last 2 away games the omens are actually quite good for the visitors; San Lorenzo have not won in four games and Quilmes have a surprisingly good recent record at "el nuevo gasométro" having won 2 of their last 4 Primera División games there. It seems foolish to back a side that are so close to relegation but I just feel that they have everything to play for and their manager Ricardo Caruso Lombardi has instilled some discipline in the side while San Lorenzo are in turmoil and have nothing to play for apart from a mid-table finish. I imagine that a late winner for Quilmes is on the cards.
The next game will also have implications for the relegation zone. All Boys could already be safe from relegation if Olimpo fail to win their game but assuming that they don't All Boys will still need another point to secure their survival. their visitors Gimnasia y Esgrima de La Plata are stuck in the automatic relegation places a single point behind Huracán. A draw in this game could actually suit both sides assuming that Huracán don't get anything from their game against the league leaders later in the weekend.
The last game on Saturday features Tigre and Independiente, two sides that still face the possibility of finishing in the relegation playoff positions. A draw for visitors Independiente would secure their safety and they have a good record in Victoria having won two of their three Primera División games there since Tigre's return to the top flight in 2007. Neither of these sides have had problems scoring goals however they find themselves in mid-table positions due to their often shambolic defending. I fancy this one to be a high scoring game.
The early kick-off on Sunday features relegation threatened Huracán and league leaders Vélez Sársfield. It is remarkable to think that these two teams played an incredible final game title decider less than two years ago which Vélez won courtesy of a highly dubious goal. Since then Vélez have remained one of the strongest sides in the Primera División while Huracán have struggled badly failing to average a point a game since that dramatic game in July 2009. I can only see one winner in this encounter and the only question for Huracán is whether Javier Cámpora can find a goal to improve his chances of finishing as the league's top scorer.
Last time Estudiantes played River Plate they humped them 0-4 at El Monumental on their way to winning the Apertura 2010 championship. That game seems a long time ago now, especially as Estudiantes have only won 1 of their last 14 games and have not experienced a win at home since March. River Plate are without a win in five games and have not scored more than one away goal since a 1-4 win at Lanús back in 2010 11 games ago and they have not won away against Estudiantes since an astonishing 0-6 result back in 2002. River could be starting this game in the relegation zone depending on whether Olimpo had managed to beat bottom of the table Newell's on Friday. Both sides have struggled to score goals in recent months so I fancy this one to be a low scoring game.
Lanús will almost certainly need to win their game against Argentinos Juniors in order to keep their championship hopes alive. This fixture has provided a couple of cracking games in the last few years, the last time it was played Argentinos recorded an astonishing 3-6 away win to avenge their 4-2 defeat the time before. I reckon there is no way they are going to record a hat-trick of high scoring games, especially given that Argentinos Juniors games have featured the fewest goals so far in the Clausura tournament with only 24 goals (for & against) in their 17 games.
Last time Banfield visited the Bombonera to play Boca Juniors they came away with a 2-3 win however their manager in that game; Julio Cesár Falcioni is now the Boca Juniors boss and he has really begun to turn things around after their poor start to the season. Boca have become one of the league's form teams with a run of 8 games without defeat ans their veteran striker Martín Palermo has bagged 6 goals in his last 7 games prompting the Boca faithful to beg him not to retire at the end of the season, but as things stand this could be his last competitive home game for the club. Banfield Have been one of the most inconsistent sides in the Clausura having experienced 3 runs of 4 games or more without a win so far but they have won both of their previous games.
The last game of the round on Monday night features two of the leagues most entertaining sides. The hosts Racing Club have played some quality football in the Clausura but have also been the most inconsistent side since their promising start to the season imploded in unexpected defeats and training ground bust-ups. In all probability their visitors Godoy Cruz will already be out of the title race by the time they take to the field, they have been one of the best away teams in the league and could close in on their second ever 3rd place finish with a decent result in this game however they have not won any of their four previous Primera División games against Racing at "el cilindro".
Predictions
As the results come in I will fill in the actual scores and colour code the predicted scores, green for exact score, yellow for correct result and red for completely wrong. Each green score gets three points, each yellow score gets one point and red scores get nothing. If you fancy playing along fill out your predictions in the comments below to see if you can beat mine.
| 10-06-11 | Prediction | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Olimpo | 1-1 | Newell's Old Boys | 2-0 |
| 11-06-11 | |||
| Colón | 0-1 | Arsenal | 1-0 |
| San Lorenzo | 0-2 | Quilmes | 2-3 |
| All Boys | 1-0 | Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) | 1-1 |
| Tigre | 0-0 | Independiente | 2-2 |
| 12-06-11 | |||
| Huracán | 0-2 | Vélez Sársfield | 0-4 |
| Estudiantes | 1-1 | River Plate | 0-0 |
| Lanús | 0-1 | Argentinos Juniors | 1-0 |
| Boca Juniors | 1-1 | Banfield | 2-0 |
| 13-06-11 | |||
| Racing Club | 3-2 | Godoy Cruz | 1-1 |
Score:4 Points
Brasileirão Série A 2011 - round 3
Match reports
Avaí stayed bottom and pointless after their third thrashing 3-1 away at Santos. Atlético Paranaense are the only other team with no points and they also have yet to score a goal after they lost 1-0 away at Palmeiras who moved up into 3rd place.
São Paulo are the only team with a 100% record after they managed a 0-1 away win against Altético Miniero.
Aside from Palmeiras and São Paulo, Flamengo and Corinthians remained the only other unbeaten teams after they played out a 2-2 draw. Ceará and Botofogo also played out a 2-2 draw. Fluminense recovered from their poor start to their championship defence with a 2-1 win against Cruzeiro, who were still struggling and slipped into the relegation zone.
The surprise result of the round was Coritiba's 5-1 thrashing of Vasco da Gama.
Results/Highlights
| 04-06-11 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Palmeiras | 1-0 | Atlético Paranaense |
| Ceará | 2-2 | Botafogo |
| Fluminense | 2-1 | Cruzeiro |
| Figueirense | 2-0 | Atlético Goianense |
| 05-06-11 | ||
| Coritiba | 5-1 | Vasco da Gama |
| Flamengo | 1-1 | Corinthians |
| Grêmio | 2-0 | Bahia |
| Santos | 3-1 | Avaí |
| América | 2-4 | Internacional |
| 08-06-11 | ||
| Atlético Mineiro | 0-1 | São Paulo |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | São Paulo | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | +4 | 9 | |
| 2 | Corinthians | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 7 | |
| 3 | Palmeiras | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 7 | |
| 4 | Atlético Mineiro | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 | +4 | 6 | |
| 5 | Grêmio | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 6 | |
| 6 | Figueirense | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 6 | |
| 7 | Fluminense | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 | |
| 8 | Vasco da Gama | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 6 | +1 | 6 | |
| 9 | Flamengo | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 4 | +4 | 5 | |
| 10 | Internacional | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 4 | |
| 11 | Santos | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | +1 | 4 | |
| 12 | Botafogo | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 | |
| 13 | Ceará | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | −1 | 4 | |
| 14 | Coritiba | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 4 | +2 | 3 | |
| 15 | Atlético Goianiense | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 3 | |
| 16 | América Mineiro | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 3 | |
| 17 | Bahia | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 7 | −3 | 1 | |
| 18 | Cruzeiro | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 1 | |
| 19 | Atlético Paranaense | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | −5 | 0 | |
| 20 | Avaí | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 10 | −9 | 0 |
For more South American football highlights, including the Argentine league, the pick of the rest and international tournaments:
Martín Palermo golazo contra Quilmes, Clausura 2011
On 5 June 2011 Argentine giants Boca Juniors found themselves two goals down to relegation favourites Quilmes in the 17th round of the Clausura 2011 tournament. Their iconic all time top scorer Martín Palermo bagged his 6th goal in 7 games with this stunning strike to pull one back and Cristian Chávez equalised four minutes later to earn the 2-2 draw. Palermo's goal made him the joint 4th highest goalscorers in the Argentine Primera División since the professionalisation of the game back in 1931 with 227 league goals.
Fecha 17 Clausura 2011 Argentina
Details of the 17th round of games in the Clausura 2011 tournament.
All of the video highlights are available by scrolling down to the Results section and clicking on the red scores.
Preview
Match reports
 |
| Juan Manuel Martínez scored the first goal in Vélez Sársfield's crucial 2-0 win against Godoy Cruz. |
All Boys missed the chance to make their Primera División survival absolutely certain going down to a 3-1 away defeat at Banfield. The teams traded a goal apiece in the first seven minutes but Banfield had to wait until late in the second half to secure the win with strikes from Marcelo Bustamante and Gabriel Mendez.
The Newell's Old Boys vs San Lorenzo clash was suspended after the Newell's barras reportedly fired gunshots at the Rosario police.
Quilmes only retain the slightest possibility of avoiding automatic relegation after they played out an entertaining 2-2 draw with Boca Juniors. The home side were two goals ahead looking good at half time after an own goal from Matías Caruzzo and a dismal defensive error gifted former River player Danilo Gerlo the second but Martín Palermo hit a stunning long range strike on 63 minutes, his 6th goal in 7 games and Cristian Chávez equalised four minutes later with another cracking goal. The draw left Quilmes needing to win both of their remaining games to avoid relegation and also utterly dependent on poor results from Gimnasia and Huracán.
Gimnasia seemed to edge slightly closer to avoiding automatic relegation with a 0-0 draw against Racing Club but in the following game Huracán recorded their first victory in 10 games with a 3-2 win against Tigre to leapfrog Gimnasia and move out of the automatic relegation places. The game was played behind closed doors after the disgraceful antics from the Huracán fans in their last home game. Javier Cámpora bagged a couple of goals to move into joint first position in the topscorers table alongside Tigre's Denis Straqualursi.
River Plate could only manage a 1-1 draw with Colón meaning that they are one place above the relegation places and the most likely to drop into the relegation zone if Olimpo manage to win their next fixture. Esteban Fuertes scored the opening goal for Colón on 57 minutes and River had to wait until 8 minutes from time for Leandro Caruso to score the equaliser.
Monday night's "entertainment" kicked off with a 0-0 draw between Argentinos Juniors and Estudiantes. The featured few good goalscoring opportunitie and was of a surprisingly poor standard considering both of these sides are hoping to represent Argentina in the Copa Sudamericana later this year.
Vélez Sársfield kept the leadership of the Clausura with a 2-0 home win against Godoy Cruz, a result which just about eliminates the Mendoza outfit from the title race. The leaders had to wait until well into the second half before Juan Manuel Martínez put them in front with a blistering strike. The game remained finely balanced until Davíd Ramírez secured the win with an injury time second aginst his former club.
Lanús kept themselves within one point of the leaders with a hard fought 1-2 away win at Independiente and are now the only realistic title rivals for Vélez.Diego Valeri put the visitors ahead early in the first half but Lanús had to wait until the 74th minute for substitute Mario Reguiero to score their vital second goal. Independiente rallied with an 80th minute strike from Maxi Velazquez but Lanús hung on for the win.
Results
| 03-06-11 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Arsenal | 2-0 | Olimpo |
| 04-06-11 | ||
| Banfield | 3-1 | All Boys |
| Newell's Old Boys | suspended | San Lorenzo |
| 05-06-11 | ||
| Quilmes | 2-2 | Boca Juniors |
| Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) | 0-0 | Racing Club |
| Huracán | 3-2 | Tigre |
| River Plate | 1-1 | Colón |
| 06-06-11 | ||
| Argentinos Juniors | 0-0 | Estudiantes |
| Independiente | 1-2 | Lanús |
| Vélez Sársfield | 2-0 | Godoy Cruz |
Positions
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vélez Sársfield | 17 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 32 | 16 | +16 | 33 | |
| 2 | Lanús | 17 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 26 | 13 | +13 | 32 | |
| 3 | Godoy Cruz | 17 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 29 | 26 | +3 | 28 | |
| 4 | Olimpo | 17 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 26 | 22 | +4 | 26 | |
| 5 | Argentinos Juniors | 17 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 14 | 10 | +4 | 26 | |
| 6 | Boca Juniors | 17 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 21 | 19 | +2 | 26 | |
| 7 | Independiente | 17 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 25 | 19 | +6 | 25 | |
| 8 | River Plate | 17 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 13 | 12 | +1 | 25 | |
| 9 | Banfield | 17 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 22 | 22 | 0 | 25 | |
| 10 | Racing Club | 17 | 7 | 2 | 8 | 22 | 21 | +1 | 23 | |
| 11 | Estudiantes | 17 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 17 | 17 | 0 | 23 | |
| 12 | Tigre | 17 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 24 | 25 | −1 | 23 | |
| 13 | All Boys | 17 | 6 | 4 | 7 | 13 | 18 | −5 | 22 | |
| 14 | San Lorenzo | 16 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 18 | 14 | +4 | 21 | |
| 15 | Colón | 17 | 6 | 3 | 8 | 20 | 25 | −5 | 21 | |
| 16 | Arsenal | 17 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 23 | 22 | +1 | 19 | |
| 17 | Quilmes | 17 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 22 | 26 | −4 | 17 | |
| 18 | Gimnasia (La Plata) | 17 | 3 | 8 | 6 | 17 | 22 | −5 | 17 | |
| 19 | Huracán | 17 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 17 | 35 | −18 | 14 | |
| 20 | Newell's Old Boys | 16 | 3 | 2 | 11 | 14 | 31 | −17 | 11 |
Show de goles
For more South American football highlights, including the Brazilian league, the pick of the rest and international tournaments:
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