With two saves by goalkeeper Sergio Romero in the definition from the penalty spot, Boca Juniors beat Palmeiras on Thursday and qualified for the final of the Copa Libertadores, in which they will face Fluminense.
Without winning a game in the knockout phase of the regional tournament, Boca once again relied on Romero, who, as he had already done against Nacional and Racing in the round of 16 and quarterfinals, led the Xeneize team to the final to be played on November 4 at the Maracanã stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
This time, the Boca team won 4-2 in the shootout, after equaling 1-1 in regulation time,
The Argentine goalkeeper, who defended his team’s goal in the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, saved Raphael Veiga and Gustavo Gómez’s penalties at the beginning of the series, which had started with Edinson Cavani’s shot stopped by Weverton.
Boca did not fail again and with the successes of Bruno Valdez, Nicolás Valentini, Jorge Figal and Guillermo “Pol” Fernández kept alive the dream of reaching its seventh Copa Libertadores and equaling Independiente de Avellaneda as the top winner in history.
“At 36 years old, when I get to penalties I can enjoy and all that becomes simpler. In another era I suffered from it,” said Romero, who has saved 12 of the 23 penalties that have been thrown at him since defending Boca’s goal. . “I tell the fan to trust, like we do. We are going to go for everything and we have one more step left.”
After the goalless draw in the first leg, the second leg played at the Allianz Parque in Sao Paulo began with dominance by the hosts, who had more than 80% ball possession.
Boca tried to close well in their field and come out with speed. And his plan bore fruit in the 23rd minute when Uruguayan Miguel Merentiel – who belongs to Palmeiras and is on loan to the Xeneize team – escaped the mark of defender Gustavo Gómez on a counterattack and crossed for his compatriot Cavani to open the scoring. , sliding next to the far post.
The 36-year-old forward ended a 336-minute scoring drought for Boca in the tournament and scored his second goal in 11 appearances with the blue and gold team.
“I came to fight for important things with this club. Little by little, we achieved what we wanted, which was to be in the final. Now there is one more step to be able to achieve something historic for this club,” said the Uruguayan striker.
Verdao accused the goal against them and could not organize themselves to attack in the rest of the first half, in which they only threatened with two approaches from Rony, which went over the crossbar.
“We didn’t have a good first half, we wanted to improve in the second and win the game in the 90 minutes. Unfortunately, we didn’t achieve it,” commented the Weverton goalkeeper. “We had opportunities, we looked for a draw and we tried to win. Penalties are details, many times it is also something emotional.”
For the second period, Palmeiras coach Abel Ferreira brought on 17-year-old attacker Endrick, who reactivated the São Paulo offensive.
On the contrary, Jorge Almirón reinforced his defense with the entry of defender Valdez for Merentiel.
The process took a turn in the 66th minute with a reckless tackle by defender Marcos Rojo on Endrick, which cost him expulsion for a second yellow card and left Boca outnumbered.
Palmeiras, a semi-finalist in the last four editions of the competition, went all out on the attack and achieved the tie in the 73rd minute with a long-range shot from Uruguayan Joaquín Piquerez.
In the final stretch, Romero grew his figure and avoided the fall of his fence by deflecting a overhead kick from Rony, which was his seventh save of the match.
In the definition from 11 meters, Romero continued his exhibition to take the Argentine club to its 12th. final of the Libertadores and avoid the fourth consecutive definition between Brazilian teams.
Guillermo Fernandez, of Boca Juniors, celebrates after converting the decisive penalty against Palmeiras, in the second leg of the Copa Libertadores semifinal, on Thursday, October 5, 2023 (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)
Weverton, Palmeiras goalkeeper, waits for the smoke to clear, before the second leg of the Copa Libertadores semifinal against Boca Juniors, on Thursday, October 5, 2023, in Sao Paulo (AP Photo/Andre Penner)
2023-10-07 09:00:00
#Boca #Juniors #eliminates #Palmeiras #penalties #finalist #Libertadores
