On Maradona’s night, Boca lost to Gimnasia and said goodbye to the title

On Maradona’s night, Boca lost to Gimnasia and said goodbye to the title

The only goal of the match was scored by Luis Miguel “Pulga” Rodríguez, from a penalty, 16 minutes into the first half.

The fall was Boca’s first in the Bombonera since Sebastián Battaglia took over as DT and, in addition, it complicated his chances of qualifying for the next Libertadores.

On the day that Diego Maradona would have turned 61, the tribute was from Gymnastics, the team he led at the time of his death, and not from Boca, the club of his loves.

Boca came out to be the protagonist, to try to dominate the ball and the territory, but barely half the court passed, his intentions were diluted in the lack of creativity and offensive power.

https://twitter.com/gimnasiaoficial/status/1454618619367723009

To make matters worse, Rossi gave Gimnasia the chance to take the lead: after 15 minutes he went unnecessarily to the right edge of the area to cut off Carbonero’s advance, knocked him down and the referee Ariel Penel succeeded in taking the penalty kick.

“Pulga” Rodríguez also hit it, with a subtle right to the left of the Boca goalkeeper to put the 1 to 0.

Boca was more desperate than ideas in search of equality and left space for the team against “Pipo” Néstor Gorosito, although it was necessary to wait until the final minutes of the stage to see new dangerous situations.

First it was Boca who almost tied, with a spectacular shot from Almendra that crashed into the left post of Rey’s goal; and then it was Gymnastics that almost stretched the difference, with another arrival of the “Flea” that, this time, Rossi covered well.

The entry of Pavón by Molinas, with poor performance, gave Boca another dynamic, which had depth and chances to tie. Rey’s great performance, on different occasions (always against Pavón), and a good intervention by Morales on the line managed to keep zero in the “triple” goal.

With the changes made by the coaches, the game ended: Boca looking for and deserving the draw and Gimnasia, which also had ten men due to the expulsion of Alemán, taking refuge near their area, in which Morales and Fratta stood out for their continuous clearances in the centers.

Gimnasia ended up holding it and took the three points from the Bombonera after seven years: his last victory had been in 2014 (2 to 0). The victory also put him within range of the qualifying zone for the Copa Sudamericana, his great goal.

On the next date, the twentieth, Boca will visit Aldovisi from Mar del Plata (Monday 8th from 9:15 pm) and Gimnasia will receive Banfield in La Plata, on Sunday 7th from 3:45 pm.

Earlier, on Wednesday, Boca will play in Mendoza with Argentinos for the semifinals of the Copa Argentina, which reserves a direct ticket to the next Copa Libertadores for the winner. The one that now seems the best path for the Battaglia team.

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