Boca close in on Argentine championship
Reuters - Monday 28 November 2011, 01:05
Boca Juniors beat Godoy
Cruz 2-1 on Sunday to move within one point of the Argentine
Apertura championship with three matches still to play.
Striker Dario Cvitanich scored after nine minutes, then was
brought down in the box in the 36th and central defender Rolando
Schiavi converted the penalty.
"I'm more happy with the result than my goal, but we're not
there yet," Cvitanich told broadcasters TV Publica at the end of
the match at the Malvinas Argentinas stadium in the shadow of
the Andes mountains.
Midfielder Ariel Rojas pulled one back for the Mendoza team
four minutes from time with a brilliant shot from outside the
box that went in off the underside of the bar.
Boca are nine points ahead of second-placed Tigre whose only
chance of the title is to win their three remaining matches and
Boca lose theirs so they go into a play-off since goal difference
is not taken into account.
Promoted Union are the only other side with an interest in
the title. If they beat Independiente at home in Santa Fe on
Monday they will be in the same position as Tigre, nine points
behind Boca with three games to go.
Title holders Velez Sarsfield, winners of last season's
Clausura, fell too far behind when their reserves were held 1-1
at home by Colon. The first team were rested for their Copa
Sudamericana semi-final second leg against Ecuador's LDU Quito
in mid-week.
Juan Sebastian Veron, set to retire at the end of the
championship, scored 10 minutes from time to give Estudiantes a
2-1 win at Arsenal, only their third win in 15 matches in the
Apertura which they won a year ago.
"These are the real fans," Veron said of the travelling
Estudiantes supporters after his angry verbal exchange with a
group of hooligans who threw flares onto the pitch and caused
Monday's home game against Banfield to be abandoned.
Racing Club, coached by Veron's former Argentina team-mate
Diego Simeone, lost their unbeaten record in a 3-2 home defeat
by nine-man Belgrano on Saturday and fell 11 points adrift of
Boca.
Racing conceded almost as many goals in one match as the
four they had in the previous 15 with Belgrano's Cesar Pereyra
on target twice.
Belgrano had Uruguayan midfielder Ribair Rodriguez sent off
in the 66th minute and defender Juan Quiroga in the 88th along
with Racing striker Gabriel Hauche after the pair kicked each
other in an ill-tempered fight for the ball.