The fact that none of the so-called big 5 of Argentine football is there does not take away interest from the grand final of the League Cup which will be played this Saturday from 9 p.m. at the Madre de Ciudades stadium in Santiago del Estero and with refereeing by Nicolás Ramírez. There are several attractions: on the one hand, Miguel Ángel Russo He intends to put the icing on the cake that is his eternal career as coach of Rosario Central; of the other, Martin Palermo He will seek to add an important chapter to the great film that is his life. Much more: Platense is going for its first title in its 118 years of life, while the Rosario team will try to celebrate after 5 years and get back into the Copa Libertadores de América. La yapa: the winner will play against River in the Champions Trophy, on Friday, December 22.
Soccer fans know by heart the film of the life of Martín Palermo, the Goal titan. The one who emerged from Estudiantes de La Plata, who is high on the list of top scorers in history, got tired of winning titles at Carlos Bianchi’s Boca: 14. In almost all of them, too, he was decisive. But now Palermo is going for, perhaps, the most epic of all its exploits: crowning Platense champion for the first time since its foundation in 1905 and also putting it in the Copa Libertadores (it would make its debut). Calamar fans already chant it at games, although the feeling is that it will become a legend if they lift the trophy.
“Something very nice was formed in the club and we have to go for everything”Martin Palermo released. And he warned: “We have to play the finals, we have to live them as they are, as what defines who is the best in Argentine football and we are there. Perhaps many do not believe or do not consider that we are in the place that we are playing in an Argentine football final. “I think we have done something.”.
Martín Palermo celebrates Platense’s qualification to the final in San Nicolás.
Three times he came close to Platense glory: in 1916 he was second to champion Racing, in 1918 he lost against Independiente in the final of the MCBA Honor Cup and in 1943 he lost the peculiar Escobar Cup to Huracán. The particularity was told in this medium: Calamar tied without goals against Globo, who finally won because they had more corners than the rival (4 to 1). Yes, corner kicks in favor were the defining criterion.
Rosario Central has 11 First Division trophies in its cabinets, although none were achieved with Miguel Ángel Russo as coach (he was champion of the First B National in 2013). The Pigeon He is one of the great idols of the rogue cast due to the number of games he has accumulated leading the team: 267. He is the second with the most duels, only behind Ángel Tulio Zof (608, with 3 titles). Thus, crowning for Russo would be closing a circle.
“We got to this place on our own merit, nobody gave us anything. The final is going to be 90 brave minutes and we hope they are favorable to us. We work to look for the best”Russo noted in the preview. And he expanded: “We try to take it very calmly. We had a normal week, as expected, looking for the best and knowing that this is how it is. You play a defining match as we have already done, but what changes you is that now you can be crowned champion, with all that that means. We are fine and we don’t have to look for strange things. We have to compete as we did throughout the year, with mistakes and virtues.”
Miguel Russo, in the semifinal against River. (JJ. García)
A no small fact is that both teams reached the final duel winning their series in penalty shootouts. Central left Racing and River on the road that way, while Platense eliminated Huracán and Godoy Cruz. So, Jorge Broun and Ramiro Macagno (who is on loan from Newell’s) are the decisive footballers.
The final will be played in a packed stadium: Rosario Central fans sold out their tickets on Thursday, while Platense’s fans had very few left. There will be a little more fans from Rosario (25,000) than from Calamar (10,000) and some even planned to arrive in Santiago del Estero without tickets. That is why the security operation will be numerous and zealous. One more fact to keep in mind is that members of the Newell’s bar let it be known through social networks that they would travel to support Vicente López’s team.
The League Cup comes to an end and glory is 90 minutes away. It is worth remembering that, in the event of equality on the scoreboard within regulation time, extra time of 30 minutes will be played, divided into two stages of 15 minutes each. If parity persists, it will be defined with the execution of a series of penalties.
2023-12-16 13:01:08
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