Millionaires self-eliminated. It was a Millionaires against Millionaires. A Millionaires who prayed for a miracle and when it appeared to him, he did not know what to do with it, he was frightened by so much heavenly work. He couldn’t do his earthly homework. He crashed against his own anxiety and his nerves, beat América 2-1 and nevertheless remained without going to the final of the League, a place that finally went, and with suffering, to Tolima.
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Going to the final seemed unlikely before the matches of this last date in group B. Who would have thought that Tolima was going to lose 0-2 in the first half against Alianza, against the eliminated Alianza. Who would have thought that while Tolima lost by two goals, Millonarios was not going to be able to do his mission. Miracles need a certain will from the one who asks for them.
Novoa’s night
The moment of tension or double tension was at minute 20. In Bogotá, judge Nicolás Gallo whistled a penalty for a doubtful, very doubtful foul against Emerson Rodríguez. An apparent blow. While the play was being reviewed in the VAR, there was a goal in Ibagué, by Alianza, by Brayan Gil, then the fans in El Campín began to believe that the impossible was possible, that perhaps it is.
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Finally the penalty was sanctioned. At the charge was the best of all, the scorer, Fernando Uribe, who was injured in an ankle and nevertheless asked for the ball, the glory was in his feet, and he started and kicked and the goalkeeper Diego Novoa, an angel dressed in black, he launched himself at his right stick, how long it is, and blocked the shot.
El Campín trembled but with anger. However, the final kind of called Millionaires. Because Novoa went ahead and the judge repeated the penalty. Double miracle. So Uribe no longer took risks. It was Daniel Ruiz who wanted to deceive that goalkeeper in black, and kicked the other stick, and there he arrived again, like a spider, with his tarantula hands, and stopped the auction. America, that America eliminated, criticized and beaten, made life bitter for the blues, blues permeated with panic. And El Campín trembled again, no longer with emotion or anger, but with disbelief.
Later, in Bogotá, they learned that in Ibagué the miracle insisted. Another goal from Alianza, another from Gil, a creeping right and 0-2. Tolima served Millonarios the final on a platter, and Millos couldn’t, he didn’t know what to do. He shot one, two, three, four times and he always stopped Novoa.
Goals, comeback and elimination
In the second half Millonarios tried to regain his composure, his tranquility, even the clock on the scoreboard disappeared, as if no one wanted to worry them. They went for the goal that was hidden from them, that had been recast in the homerun, and nothing changed, Novoa stayed on his own, he stopped a shot at Márquez that seemed lethal. Those that he did not tackle on merits were found by chance. And the hidden chronometer went on and on, and in Ibagué nothing else happened.
Millionaires were missing two goals at that time to be a finalist, and the worst thing is that he had them. And since he did not break his spell, everything began to change or to be put in order: goal by Tolima, by Gustavo Ramírez at 75 …
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And then, a penalty for America, a so-called penalty when the ball brushed Bertel’s arm. Ramos kicked and scored, 0-1. And at 81 Tolima tied their game and that point was enough for them.
And then there was another penalty for Millos, another rare penalty, and this time it was Silva who did score, 1-1. And the victory came, a goal by Márquez, 2-1, victory, but not enough.
There was no more time. Millonarios had the miracle in their hands and did not know what to do with it, he came back, but Tolima tied and goes to the final.
PABLO ROMERO
Editor of EL TIEMPO
@PabloRomeroET
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