River Plate appealed today to character to beat Sporting Cristal of Peru, by 4 to 2, in an intense and hot night of Libertadores Cupwith another complete frame in the Más Monumental that brought more emotion to the game.
Nicolás De La Cruz, Esequiel Barco (twice) and Pablo Solari converted for Núñez’s club, while Brazilian Ignacio Da Silva and Ecuadorian Washington Corozo scored for the Peruvians.
Martín Demichelis’s team achieved its first points in group D and is positioned third, behind Fluminense from Brazil (6) and The Strongest from Bolivia (3), which has the best goal difference (+1 against 0).
The first half was captivating and intense. Sporting Cristal struck first and quickly with a header from Da Silva, who free of marks took advantage of the set piece.
River responded shortly after with a shot from Ignacio Fernández that goalkeeper Renato Solís sent to the corner and tied it with De La Cruz. The Uruguayan connected with his head, alone, the precise cross of Enzo Díaz for 1-1.
Between 25 and 30 minutes, River cornered Sporting Cristal and there was no shortage of situations: a header against the post by Salomón Rondón, plus two attempts by Lucas Beltrán and Nacho Fernández.
At that point, the Más Monumental was a pressure cooker with the fans against the rulings of the Colombian referee Ospina and asking for a new goal that came with Barco’s play.
The former Independiente confirmed his good moment, looked for space between many rival legs and took the shot that had a weak response from Solís for the 2-1.
Sporting Cristal was careful on the mark, but incisive in attack every time they recovered the ball. River’s midfield, without Rodrigo Aliendro from the beginning, was not as solid as in previous victories and the speed of the Cristal players made a dent in the “millionaire” defensive line.
Demichelis’s team had a fatal two minutes. Corozo received a through ball between Paulo Díaz and Leandro González Pírez, and was preparing to define as he entered the area, until he was brought down by Enzo Díaz. The former Talleres saw the red and Cristal tied it with the prodigious punch of Corozo himself, on the free kick.
The second half began with successful substitutions by Demichelis: Aliendro and Solari in place of De La Cruz and a weak Rondón.
The former Colo Colo provided a greater imbalance in attack and from one of his plays River’s third was generated. Barco grabbed a rebound and took a shot that deflected off Da Silva that upset Solís.
More than 83,000 souls shouted with soul and life for Barco’s second goal because the cup night was more complicated than it seemed in the previous one.
With Aliendro, River stabilized in the midfield and Nacho Fernández was allowed to leave to rearm the defense: Andrés Herrera entered for the former Gimnasia and Casco covered the absence of Enzo Díaz.
The climax of the night in Núñez came with Solari’s goal. Enzo Pérez assisted him with a great mid-distance pass and the author of the agonizing goal against Newell’s stung her on Solís’s exit.
Sporting Cristal felt the impact, was no longer so sharp in attack and exhibited some doubts in defense that River did not forgive.
After the fourth goal, River, with the help of Enzo Pérez, managed the game smoothly and celebrated with his people a victory that was as costly as it was essential.
River’s next commitment in the Copa Libertadores will be on May 2 when they visit the leader Fluminense.
Source: Ambito
I am Pierce Boyd, a driven and ambitious professional working in the news industry. I have been writing for 24 Hours Worlds for over five years, specializing in sports section coverage. During my tenure at the publication, I have built an impressive portfolio of articles that has earned me a reputation as an experienced journalist and content creator.
