The fourteenth round of the Torneo Apertura ended on Monday. Relegation strugglers Racing claiming
a hard-fought win over the champions of South America, Estudiantes de La Plata, thanks to a goal
from a former Estudiantes player. Estudiantes' city rivals Gimnasia tore Huracán to shreds,
running out 4-1 winners in a match which saw two superb [.
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The thirteenth round of the 2009 Torneo Apertura ended on Monday night with a late, late goal from
Arsenal de Sarandà midfielder Diego Galván which clinched a point for El Arse after they'd
trailed for practically the entire second half to Huracán. Angel Cappa's team were thus denied a
third win of the campaign.
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Saturday's matches saw Newell's Old Boys return to the top of the table with a 2-1 home win over
River Plate in which, not for the first time, Diego Buonanotte gave the visitors their only joy of
the match. A little later, Atlético Tucumán ended a run of eight matches without a win, thrashing
Tigre [.
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Monday evening's matches saw Banfield claim a 2-1 victory at home to Estudiantes, and Newell's grab
a late win by the same scoreline away to Tigre. With these results, both teams go joint top with 26
points, two ahead of champions Vélez and three ahead of Estudiantes and San Lorenzo. Colón could
go joint third [.
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Boca Juniors beat Chacarita Juniors by three golazos to nil (losing Juan Román Riquelme to a foot
injury until 2010 in the process), and Lanús dismembered Tigre in El Sur, but the big story of
Thursday was River Plate's 2-1 victory over Argentinos Juniors the Núñez giants' first away win
in 17 attempts, with [.
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The game of musical chairs atop the Primera División gathers apace. Estudiantes, Banfield and
Newell's have all led the table at various points since Friday afternoon, but at the end of the
weekend it's Colón who are left looking down on the rest of Argentina, after a 2-1 win at home to
San Lorenzo courtesy [.
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We're now halfway through the Torneo Apertura, and two points separate 1st from 8th. How's the
AFA's playoff system going to work if everyone ends up on the same points total? San Lorenzo lead
after edging out Central on Friday evening, Racing and Gimnasia La Plata both lost on Saturday, and
Sunday saw Rolando Schiavi [.
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MartÃn Palermo scored an amazing 45-yard header to win a five-goal bonanza in La Bombonera as Boca
Juniors became the first team this season to beat Vélez Sársfield. It's got the more excitable
elements of the Argentine press (which is to say, the Argentine press) insisting that he should
start for the selección.
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The weekend's clásico was a damp squib, with San Lorenzo and Racing cancelling each other out in
Boedo. Earlier on Sunday Newell's beat Lanús to go fifth, whilst on Saturday Chacarita's pointless
start to the season continued with a 3-1 defeat to Colón, and Independiente took a point from the
champions, Vélez Sársfield.
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The clásico del Sur was a happy one for Banfield, who ran out 2-1 winners away to Lanús. The
goals came from a Paraguayan and a Uruguayan, which could be the Argentine version of some sort of
'Englishman, Irishman, Scotsman' joke. Estudiantes beat Independiente late on, and in the first
half of the final match [.
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Tuesday night saw a home win at the Gigante del Arroyito, not that it'll be much consolation for
the majority of supporters of the selección. River Plate played ineptly and when Diego Buonanotte
gave the ball away in midfield, Rosario Central were able to break and score their second goal in
an eventual 2-1 win.
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River Plate began the Apertura as they mean to continue it, conceding a chaotic goal to Banfield
after just a minute and looking largely toothless in an attempt to get back into the game. Clausura
runners-up Huracán scored a cracker but still lost to Lanús, and Boca were 2-0 down at home to
Argentinos at [.
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After the finalÃsima comes the rather more mundane business of recording the scores from the final
round of the 2009 Torneo Clausura. Vélez took the title and Gimnasia de Jujuy and San MartÃn de
Tucumán both go down, as we already know, but elsewhere there were wins for Boca and San Lorenzo,
one last humiliation [.
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Sunday's two clásicos saw two unheralded winners, although given recent form they weren't,
perhaps, huge surprises. Huracán won away to San Lorenzo (in La Bombonera) for the first time in
seven years to maintain the pressure at the top thanks to absolutely useless marking at a corner
from Diego Simeone's supposedly solid defence.
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At the start of play this weekend, Arsenal de Sarandà were bottom of the Torneo Clausura, and
Lanús were top. In most leagues it would have been a foregone conclusion but this is Argentina.
Bottom beat top 4-1, and after Colón khad ept up what little heat they could add to the title
race with [.
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Vélez Sársfield got a win to keep the pressure on leaders Lanús which also relegated Gimnasia de
Jujuy after three seasons in the Primera A. Elsewhere on Sunday MartÃn Palermo turned in a vintage
performance as Boca Juniors beat San MartÃn de Tucumán, Tigre saw off Copa-distracted
Estudiantes and there were dull draws in La Plata [.
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Sunday's matches saw Racing edge a little further clear of Rosario Central in the promedio thanks
to a draw against title-chasing Colón, a few hours after River Plate and Independiente had served
up a veritable feast of complete and total bloody incompetence with a second half that saw three
three!
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Sunday's last matches ensured River Plate weren't the only utterly embarrassed team this weekend
and both the humiliations occured at Huracán's ground. Independiente got given a thorough
going-over as the 'home' side against Estudiantes. 2-0 up at half time, Alejandro Sabella's boys
ran out 5-1 winners.
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Sunday's matches saw both River and Boca lose - the former in circumstances rather more pathetic
than the latter, with another truly chaotic performance - whilst Huracán edged out Godoy Cruz and
Racing got a 4-1 win over Arsenal to match the score of local rivals Independiente the previous
day. All the scores and scorers [.
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River Plate didn't have an easy welcome home from their fans following the midweek elimination from
the Copa Libertadores, but just about got past Gimnasia de Jujuy anyway, thanks to Marcelo
Gallardo's assist - with his first touch after being brought on at half time - for Radamel Falcao
GarcÃa. Elsewhere on Sunday Central saw [.
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Away from La Bombonera, there was action that was more meaningful, if anything, to the league
standings. The lead went from Colón to Vélez, but is now shared between the Liniers club and
Lanús, who beat Tigre on Sunday evening. Racing actually took the chance they were presented with
to climb a little further away [.
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The top three have had a game of musical chairs this weekend, and thanks to Lanús losing, Colón
drawing and Vélez winning, it's the boys from Liniers who reach the halfway point of the campaign
on top. Neither River Plate nor Boca Juniors prepared in an ideal manner for next week's
superclásico - it's normally [.
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With Godoy Cruz, Gimnasia La Plata and Central both drawing on Saturday, Racing had a chance to
gain some points in La Plata, but were more concentrated on keeping Estudiantes out. Amazingly,
given that we're talking about Racing, referee Carlos Maglio booked Mauro Boselli for diving rather
than give a penalty against Caruso Lombardi's boys, [.
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On Sunday, Racing finally won a match to minimise the damage done to their survival hopes by their
rivals' victories earlier in the weekend. Juan Román Riquelme put a turbulent week behind him
to help Boca to an easy win over Argentinos, Newell's came back from behind twice against
Huracán to claim a point, and [.
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One match was postponed this time round - the Thursday night match in Mendoza was suspended by the
referee with the score at 1-1 after Godoy Cruz fans rioted. The club will have to pay for the
stadium (which is municipally owned) to be repared before the city council allow it to be used
again. [...]
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Martín Palermo scored for Boca Juniors to claim his 196th goal for the club but, whatever you
read on other websites in the next day or two, he has not just become the club's all-time leading
goalscorer. Lanús went top with an away win in Jujuy, whilst Racing got done over again, and
their former [.
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Independiente won out in the Clásico de Avellaneda and Tigre lost at home to Vélez whilst
in another clasg between sides who will be fighting for the title, Lanús narrowly edged out
Boca Juniors. Something very odd is happening in Núñez though. On Sunday River Plate not
only won to go top of the table, [.
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It's not over just yet. The Torneo Apertura proper came to a conclusion this weekend but so far we
only know the order of things at one end of the table. Yes that's right, it's official: River Plate
are rubbish. The top four all won - in Lanús's case in vain - so the title [...]
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Lanús won; Boca drew; Tigre and San Lorenzo were both victorious, and the race for the Torneo
Apertura title this year will go to the last weekend, with four teams still involved. River Plate
lost in Vélez's stadium to Godoy Cruz, and are two adrift at the bottom. Get the full lowdown
from all the [.
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Boca Juniors edge closer to the title but Tigre, after ensuring River Plate remain bottom, are
still right on their heels. Gimnasia La Plata climbed to the top of the Promedio relegation zone
and dragged Colón towards it, should the sides below them have a run at some point. The other
relegation clash, in Jujuy [.
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Hard to say what was the biggest surprise this weekend: River winning after twelve matches;
Argentinos vs. Estudiantes producing a performance (from one side at least); Vélez beating
Boca in the Monumental, or the upshot of that score, which means the leadership of the table is now
shared between San Lorenzo and Tigre with four [.
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Racing got an away win which will help them immeasurably in the relegation battle; Estudiantes
edged out Independiente; both Rosario clubs lost on Friday night, and River were involved in a good
match in which it wasn't them who did the throwing away of a good lead, for a change. At the top,
San Lorenzo [.
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On Friday night, Tigre kept up the pressure on leaders San Lorenzo, who kept their noses in front
thanks to a comfortable win over Arsenal the following day. Sunday was clásico day, with River
matching Racing blow-for-blow in a supremely entertaining match of six goals before Estudiantes
eased past neighbours Gimnasia in the clásico de [.
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The clásico was a bit of a damp squib in the end: River and San Lorenzo didn't exactly serve
up a poor match, but it wasn't a great one either and the one talking point was the undisputed foul
of the weekend, a flying studs-up kick by San Lorenzo defender Sebastián
Méndez right in the middle [.
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The third round of matches in the 2008 Torneo Apertura is now over, and it's been an interesting
one. Boca Juniors returned to Argentina with a win but lost Martín Palermo, who's torn knee
ligaments and will be out for between five and eight months. That record will have to be put on ice
for [...]
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