Argie Bargy : Estudiantes, Argentina

Little Arsenal making big waves

Joel Richards — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 10:45:00 GMT

The specialised press dedicated 21 pages to other matters before finally getting there.

The Big Five all had their story – with Independiente winning in the Sudamericana (despite the opposition keeper having blood pouring from his head after being hit by a rock thrown by fans). Boca are arguing about where they’ll spend the preseason, River have to bring in a new holding midfielder to the starting XI, San Lorenzo have the clásico against Huracán and Racing star Gio Moreno took up the centre spread.

Then came Vélez and Estudiantes, the top two, who play on Friday in a match that could decide the championship.

Only then, 22 pages in, did Arsenal get a mention. All 164 words of a mention.

Usually, the club from Sarandí only really deserve a small column hidden away in the deeper depths of the press because they are wallowing in a mid- to low-table mediocrity, with no real stars, not playing particularly well, and just getting by.

But this year it is different. This year’s league title race is a three-way between Estudiantes, top of the table on 26 points, Vélez, on 23, and Arsenal. Although they only get 164 words, Arsenal are also on 23 points.

The *rse, as they are affectionately known, are an extremely modest club. The club’s history is limited, along with its resources. The ground has a capacity of 16,000 but has a distinctly non-league feel to it. The club’s record top scorer in the first division has scored a mere 33.

In 1957, Julio, his brother and a group of friends decided to set up a club. Legend has it that it was the friend with a stutter who suggested they should name the new club after the Londoners, Ar-Ar-Ar-Arsenal.

The group of amigos looked no further than their local rivals, giants Independiente and Racing, for inspiration over what Arsenal de Sarandí’s club colours must be – hence the sky-blue shirt with the red stripe.

Julio later moved on to the presidency of Independiente, and in 1979 made the move into the role he holds to this day – president of AFA. But it wasn’t just Grondona who moved onwards and upwards, so too did the club that he founded 53 years ago.

After wallowing in the lower divisions, then gradually working their way up, Arsenal gained promotion to the top flight in 2002. Jorge Burruchaga, the clubs most successful youth team product who returned to coach the side and take them to the first division, said he shouted more when the *rse won promotion than when he won the World Cup with Argentina.

The crowning moment in Arsenal’s history came in 2007, when the side beat Club America in the final of the Copa Sudamericana to win on away goals.

But just three points off the top, Arsenal are now in with the chance of becoming the latest ‘surprise package’ in Argentina.

In recent years, Argentinos Juniors – current holders, Banfield, Lanús, are just a few examples of ‘modest’ clubs to have won the league title. Tigre, Huracán and Godoy Cruz have all come close.

And should Estudiantes and Vélez cancel each other out on Friday, Arsenal could go joint-top of the table this weekend.

Gustavo Alfaro, who won the Sudamericana with the club in 2007, returned as coach this year and looked to build up a team that hid it's defects. “This is down to everyone,’ he said this week speaking about the side's position in the league, ‘from the players, the coaching staff and the board to the kit men.’ But Alfaro is playing the classic underdog card in the title race. ‘It is up to Vélez and Estudiantes, who have the responsibility here. We are just onlookers.’

At one stage in the season, Arsenal seemed content to do just that – look on and let things happen. Against River at the Monumental a few weeks ago, Arsenal started to kill time with less than 10 minutes on the clock. There would be no initiative. A point would do, and if we can grab one on the counter then great, seemed to be the plan.

But last weekend they showed that they could take games to their opposition too. They may have only been playing Gimnasia, deep in the relegation battle, but twice Arsenal found themselves behind, twice they pulled it back and when it counted, right at the death, they took the lead and all three points.

Working against Arsenal is the fact that with Estudiantes and Vélez out of the Sudamericana, both are now focusing solely on the league. Arsenal might push the two of them to the death, just don’t expect to hear too much about it.

The original 'Next Maradona' nears history as Palermo's ex calls in the lawyers

Joel Richards — Fri, 14 May 2010 15:27:00 GMT

Impressed by La Liga Loca’s Beginer’s Guide to La Liga’s Last Day, there seemed no reason, in much the same way as Argie Bargy’s adopted country copied the language, not to copy the idea from the motherland.

Here are the weekend’s talking points…

Title race

He of the rabona (the Joe Cole wrap-around to you and me), he who was the original 'Next Maradona', he who compared winning the title but not being the best team in the league to the best looking girl not being up to much in the sack, could become He of the Clasura ’10 champions.

Argentinos Juniors travel to Huracán on Sunday. A win, and perhaps a draw, will see the club win their first title since 1985, and add another chapter to the legend of Claudio ‘Bichi’ Borghi, the Argentinos coach.
Libertadores

Keeping an eye on how things pan out for Argentinos will be Estudiantes, still in with a shout of winning the title. A single one goal has all but dashed hopes of the double. 0-0 last Sunday with Central means they need Argentinos to lose to have a chance of winning the league.

On Thursday, they lost – undeservedly - to Internacional in the Libertadores to a late header. The result isn’t beyond reach for next week’s return leg, but it is the proverbial montaña that they have to climb.

Sudamericana watch

Everyone may see it as a rubbish Europa League, which is really saying something, and it may be concocted to attract TV money and simply fill in the non-Libertadores Cup half of the year, but the Sudamericana is in fact a fair reflection of the season’s best teams.

The traditional European season, as you all know, is broken down into the Apertura and Clausura in Argentina, allowing two champions. Together, they make up the ‘normal’ season and it is the top six from this table that provides Argentina’s entries to the competition.

So far Argentinos, Banfield, Newell’s, Estudiantes and Independiente have all qualified. Vélez and Lanús both need to win, and the other not to, to grab the final spot.

Relegation watch

Tigre fans conducted a peaceful, amicable, and in-no-way-violence-inciting pretend funeral up in the stands for their hated rivals Chacarita last weekend. The Undertakers, together with Atlético Tucumán have hogged the first two relegations spots all to themselves. Central and Gimnasia will play the relegation playoff, against sides from the second division yet to be decided.

River/Boca watch

After three spells at the club, six league titles, one Libertadores, one Supercopa, over 300 games and nearly 70 goals, Marcelo Gallardo is leaving River Plate. Wiping away the tears, the playmaker – affectionately known as ‘Chucky’ (from Child’s Play, for his looks) told the press that it was best for him to leave.

He wants to carry on playing, but with a injury record that makes Arjen Robben look like Bruce Willis in Unbreakable, we may not be seeing much more of Gallardo.

Mauro Camoranesi won’t be replacing him. Offered half of what River’s top earner takes to the bank, the Juve player’s agent walked out of the meeting after four (4) minutes. Second choice Argie Bargy also scoffed at the $400,000 offer. River clearly don’t know what journalism pays…

Riquelme, meanwhile, is injured and needs surgery. The debate about him not going to the World Cup is now officially null and void, because it doesn’t matter that he is a genius but also refers to himself as Riquleme, and that he fell out with Maradona. The debate is over. He wouldn’t have made it.

World Cup squad watch

Ariel Garcé is going to South Africa, yes or yes (as the Argentines would say it). “I booked the flights with my mates months ago,” said the defender. He, like most of us, clearly wasn’t expecting Diego to offer him the chance to play while he was there.

Martín Palermo, meanwhile, may have his chances of making the final 23 scuppered by his ex-wife, Lorena Barrichi. Lorena has filed a lawsuit against Palermo, citing tax evasion and money laundering. No hard feelings after the split, then.

Final Day Fixtures
Arsenal-Godoy Cruz
San Lorenzo-Newell’s
Banfield-Boca
Chacarita/Palermo Dead-Racing
Gimnasia – Atlético Tucumán
River-Tigre
Independiente-Lanús
Central – Vélez
Huracán – Argentinos
Colón - Estudiantes

FourFourTwo.com: More to read...

Argentina table, fixtures & results
Argie Bargy home
Blogs home
Latest South America news
News home
Interviews home
Forums home
FourFourTwo.com home

Argentinos' amazing comeback keeps title hopes alive

Joel Richards — Mon, 10 May 2010 15:28:00 GMT

“Muerde,” says the 40-something up in the stands at the Argentinos Juniors game on Sunday afternoon.

“Put him under” would be the rough translation of what he wanted his team’s player to do, but the literal translation would simply be ’bite.’

Two seats along, granddad could see that his granddaughter, sat in between him and his 40 something son, was a bit bored and not too happy. The abuelo leant over, and in her ear let go a quiet ’woof’.

She managed a smile. Things weren’t going to plan for Argentinos, and light-hearted jokes from the older generation - who have seen things not go to plan for over two decades - were needed.

Even though Argentinos had packed out their stadium, there was silence in the stands. No singing and no jumping, just some nail-biting. Opposite, several thousand Independiente supporters were basking in the sun and basking in their glory.

The Rojo were 3-1 up, ruining their opponent’s chances of winning the title and were still in with a chance of winning the championship themselves.

What happened next quickly surpassed by any of the other stories of the weekend. Not even River Plate’s Gabriel Funes Mori hitting his first goal of the season after not finding the net in 14 matches (and then hitting two more for a 23-minute hattrick) would steal the limelight.

Nor would Hernan Lopez hitting a 28-minute hattrick of headers against Chacarita, only to then find a fourth in the second half. Huracán beating Boca at the Bombonera for the first time in 30 years would also fail to take front page.

Not even Newell’s thrashing Gimnasia 6-0 - going top of the 2009/10 table on Saturday night – and becoming the best side in the land would be the weekend’s top story. Sunday’s events at Argentinos would trump them all.

Diego Maradona took his seat in the stands and was sat next to his son, who the Argentinos stadium is now named after. So while the two Diego’s watched on, Estudiantes were taking on Central. The title race had come down to a two-horse race between Argentinos and Estudiantes, and both played at the same time on Sunday.

Despite taking the lead, things soon looked grim for Argentinos.

Lionel Núñez took the corner for Independiente, and saw his cross swing all the way round and over substitute keeper Ojeda and into the top corner. Núñez appeared to be apologising for his fluke, but was in fact apologising for scoring against the club he started out at.

After a goal from Darío Gandín, Núñez then repeated his hands-together head-bowed gesture after hitting his second, which took Independiente to a 3-1 lead.

Estudiantes may have had Juan Sebastián Verón sent off and were struggling with a 0-0 draw, but the dream of the title seemed over for the Bicho. Up in the stands, a grandfather woofed.

Núñez was soon taken off as Independiente looked to tighten up at the back and win all three points. He trudged off with his now-familiar hands-together head-down apology to the home fans, which was lucky because if he had held his head high, the full bottle of water that hurtled towards him from the stands would probably have knocked him unconscious.

Núñez survived, but Independiente did not. Tolo Gallego’s plan to shut up shop and defend a 3-1 lead chronically back-fired.

Argentinos bombarded the Rojo’s area, and pulled back a goal. Independiente wasted two remarkable chances to kill the game off, but then, two minutes from time, amidst the rubble of fallen bodies in the 6-yard area, the ball fell for defender Juan Sabia to blast in the equaliser.

Argentinos would go into the final day of the season a point behind Estudiantes, who had ended their game with Central 0-0.

That was until the 93rd minute, when Independiente ridiculously tried to pass the ball out of defence, only to lose it and allow Argentinos to grab the winner via a deflected shot from captain Matías Caruzzo.

The pile-on that ensued included one of the photographers stood nearby, who missed his best photo opportunity in 25 years of covering Argentinos.

Maybe he, and the team, will keep their composure next weekend and get the shot of Argentinos lifting the league trophy.

RESULTS Vélez 4-1 Chacarita, Newell’s 6-0 Gimnasia, Racing 0-3 River Plate, Argentinos Juniors 4-3 Independiente, Estudiantes 0-0 Central, Tigre 1-2 Banfield, Boca Juniors 1-2 Huracán, Atlético Tucumán 1-1 Arsenal