Of the eleven finals of the Copa Libertadores de América that it played throughout its history, Boca had to define six of them against Brazilian rivals. And in general, they have done very well: they won four (1977 to Cruzeiro, 2000 to Palmeiras, 2003 to Santos and 2007 to Gremio) and lost only two: the first in 1963 against Pelé’s Santos and the last in 2012 against Corinthians. On three occasions (2000, 2003 and 2007) he lifted the cup as a visitor. So the antecedents give free rein to the enthusiasm for the very final this Saturday at the Maracaná stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
1963: Boca-Santos
The legendary president of Boca, Alberto J. Armando, saw further than anyone and devoted more attention, money and energy to the 1963 Cup than any other Argentine team up to that point. So much so that to win it he bought José Francisco Sanfilippo, the top scorer of the last five seasons, from San Lorenzo for 25 million pesos. After eliminating Peñarol in the semifinal, Boca reached the final against Pelé’s Santos, which was defending the continental title won a year earlier against the Uruguayan Aurinegros on the dusty floor of the Monumental stadium.
In the first leg played on Wednesday, September 4 at the Maracaná, Santos began winning comfortably 3-0 with two goals from Coutinho and one from Lima before the first half hour. But Boca scored with two from Sanfilippo, lost 3 to 2 and was within reach for the return a week later in a Bombonera exploded with public and fervor. Boca started winning 1-0 with another impact from the relentless Sanfilippo in the second half. If he retained the victory, he would go to the third game at 72 hours at the Centenario stadium in Montevideo. But Pelé took the final on his shoulders and pulled it out. A goal from Coutinho and another from him gave him a 2-1 victory and allowed him to remain the champion of America. Mouth remained silent. And he had to wait fourteen years to be able to lift the Cup.
1977: Boca-Cruzeiro
The team led by Juan Carlos Lorenzo took the lead in the first final played on Tuesday, September 6 in La Boca. An early goal by Carlos Veglio four minutes into the first half gave them a narrow 1-0 victory against Cruzeiro de Belo Horizonte. With the tie, on Sunday the 11th at Mineirao they were champions. But with thirteen minutes left, a sensational free kick by right back Nelinho gave the Brazilians the victory and sent the final to Montevideo.
The game should have been played on Tuesday the 13th. But Lorenzo, a cabulero like himself, argued that it couldn’t be played due to the fog and achieved a 24-hour suspension. The truth became known over time. He had asked to change the yellow shirts with a blue pocket that Boca lost in Brazil with and the replacement white ones only arrived on Wednesday afternoon. The tie at zero on a muddy floor could only be broken on penalties after 120 minutes of play and overtime. Mouzo, Tesare, Zanabria, Pernía and Felman scored for Boca. And since Hugo Gatti stopped Vanderlei’s last shot, the Libertadores remained for the first time among the millions of Boquense arms. The dream had come true.
2000: Boca-Palmeiras
The first international title of Carlos Bianchi’s glorious cycle came with suffering. Palmeiras did not give up in the Bombonera and drew 2-2 that seemed to complicate the Xeneizes’ chances. But Boca did not shrink in the Morumbí de San Pablo either. On June 21 he got the 0-0 he needed and on penalties, he made the difference. Oscar Córdoba saved two shots from his compatriot Faustino Asprilla and Roque Junior. And in the executions. the twin Guillermo, Riquelme, Palermo and Bermúdez did not fail. Boca won 4 to 2 and 22 years after the previous consecration, they lifted the Cup for the first time in the heart of Brazil.
2003: Boca-Santos
Rarely in the history of the Libertadores has one team been so superior to another in a final. Boca won and was liked back and forth. Perhaps he was the best champion of the Bianchi era, who had returned that year after leaving in 2002. Two goals from Marcelo Delgado gave him a 2-0 victory on June 25 at the Bombonera. And at Morumbí, on July 2, a great goal from Carlitos Tevez, another from Delgado and the remaining penalty from Rolando Schiavi rounded off a brilliant 3 to 1. Boca won its third Cup in four years in a big way and in the heart of Brazil, the fifth in its history. Couldn’t be better.
2007: Boca-Gremio
Juan Román Riquelme that year felt capable of anything. And he led the team led by Miguel Angel Russo to another Cup in which he won both games in the final. In La Bombonera, on June 13 they swept 3-0 with a goal from Rodrigo Palacio, another from Román and the third from Patricio against. And in Porto Alegre a week later, two goals from a supreme Riquelme made it 2-0 that could have been greater if Palermo had not missed a penalty at the end. It was the sixth Boca Cup that elevated a superior player even further to glory.
2012: Boca-Corinthians
The saddest ending. And not just because he lost her. On June 27 at the Bombonera and with Riquelme again as the top star, the team led by Julio Falcioni won 1-0 with a goal from Facundo Roncaglia and five minutes from the end, a breakaway by Romarinho gave Corinthians the tie. In San Pablo, the preview was marked by the news that Riquelme would leave the club after the match against Falcioni and president Daniel Angelici. And on July 4 at the Pacaembú stadium, Boca was a tearjerker.
As if he could not have overcome the departure of his greatest idol, he played very poorly and lost 2 to 0 with two goals from Emerson. The confirmation in the locker room that Román would no longer be there was the closing of a painful night in which Boca was not Boca, but an emptied team, without spirit, surrendered to defeat.
2023-11-04 03:01:00
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