2020 Copa de la Liga Profesional final

2020 Copa de la Liga Profesional final
Copa Diego Armando Maradona final
Estadio San Juan del Bicentenario, venue
Event2020 Copa de la Liga Profesional
Boca Juniors Banfield
1 1
Boca Juniors won 5–3 on penalties
Date17 January 2021
VenueSan Juan del Bicentenario, San Juan
Man of the MatchEdwin Cardona (Boca Juniors)
RefereeFacundo Tello
Attendance0

The Copa Diego Armando Maradona final was the final match to decide the champions of the 2020 Copa de la Liga Profesional (renamed "Copa Diego Armando Maradona"), the 1st edition of this national cup. It was played on 17 January 2021 at the Estadio San Juan del Bicentenario in San Juan between Boca Juniors and Banfield.[1]

Boca Juniors won the match via a penalty shoot-out after the game had finished 1–1 and were crowned as champions of the cup.[2] As Boca Juniors had already qualified for the 2021 Copa Libertadores, San Lorenzo (best team of the 2019–20 Superliga Argentina and 2020 Copa de la Superliga aggregate table not yet qualified) gained the 2021 Copa Libertadores berth (Regulations Article 4.2).[3]

The runners-up Banfield won a qualifying play-off against Vélez Sarsfield, winners of the Fase Complementación, to decide which one would participate in the 2022 Copa Sudamericana (Regulations Article 4.7).[3]

Qualified teams

Team Previous finals appearances (bold indicates winners)
Boca JuniorsNone
BanfieldNone

Road to the final

Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).

Boca Juniors Round Banfield
Opponent Result Group stage Opponent Result
Lanús 2–1 (A) Matchday 1 River Plate 3–1 (A)
Newell's Old Boys 2–0 (A) Matchday 2 Godoy Cruz 1–0 (H)
Talleres (C) 0–1 (H) Matchday 3 Rosario Central 4–2 (A)
Lanús 1–2 (H) Matchday 4 River Plate 0–2 (H)
Newell's Old Boys 2–0 (H) Matchday 5 Godoy Cruz 0–0 (A)
Talleres (C) 0–0 (A) Matchday 6 Rosario Central 1–1 (H)
Zone 4 winners
Pos Team Pld Pts
1 Boca Juniors 6 10
2 Talleres (C) 6 9
3 Newell's Old Boys 6 7
4 Lanús 6 7
Source: AFA
 Final standings Zone 3 runners-up
Pos Team Pld Pts
1 River Plate 6 15
2 Banfield 6 11
3 Rosario Central 6 7
4 Godoy Cruz 6 1
Source: AFA
Opponent Result Fase Campeón Opponent Result
Arsenal 1–1 (H) Matchday 1 Atlético Tucumán 2–0 (A)
Independiente 2–1 (A) Matchday 2 Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) 2–1 (H)
Huracán 3–0 (H) Matchday 3 Colón 2–1 (A)
River Plate 2–2 (H) Matchday 4 Talleres (C) 2–3 (A)
Argentinos Juniors 2–2 (A) Matchday 5 San Lorenzo 4–1 (H)
Group A winners
Pos Team Pld Pts
1 Boca Juniors 5 9
2 River Plate 5 8
3 Argentinos Juniors 5 8
4 Arsenal 5 7
5 Independiente 5 6
6 Huracán 5 3
Source: AFA
 Final standings Group B winners
Pos Team Pld Pts
1 Banfield 5 12
2 Talleres (C) 5 11
3 Gimnasia y Esgrima (LP) 5 7
4 Colón 5 4
5 San Lorenzo 5 4
6 Atlético Tucumán 5 4
Source: AFA

Match

First half

Carlos Tévez, one of the players that scored all the penalties to allow Boca Juniors to win the title

In the first half, both teams were overly cautious and failed to break the score, despite a few near misses. Banfield's strategy was clear from the start: they ceded possession to Boca Juniors and focused on capitalizing on their opponents' mistakes to launch counter-attacks, knowing the opposing attackers' limited tracking back. On the other side, Boca Juniors lacked clarity in attack, except when Edwin Cardona or Sebastián Villa got hold of the ball.[4] A shot from Cardona, another from Villa; two attempts by Martín Payero, some runs by Mauricio Cuero, were the first approaches in the initial minutes, stages that were of study, with maximum concentration from both teams.[5]

From the 30-minute mark onward, both teams began to create chances with a bit more consistency. Villa, with a low shot in the 33rd minute, almost opened the scoring. But immediately afterward came Rodríguez's long-range effort that swerved in the air and forced an unorthodox save from Boca Juniors' goalkeeper Esteban Andrada. Both Boca and Banfield managed to neutralize each other.[5]

Second half

The lack of depth in the attack continued in the second half. Nevertheless, the first goal of the match came after a moment of brilliance from Cardona, who cut inside from the left, leaving Alexis Maldonado behind, and unleashed a powerful right-footed shot that was unstoppable for goalkeeper Mauricio Arboleda in the 18th minute. However, the Colombian felt a muscle strain as he shot and had to be substituted at his best moment by Eduardo Salvio.[5] From then on, the team from the south tried their best, relying on set pieces and long-range shots.[4]

The sending off of Boca Juniors' Emmanuel Mas for a second yellow card gave Banfield a boost. With renewed energy from the bench, they changed the dynamic of the match against a Boca Juniors side that finished with Nicolás Capaldo as right-back and Julio Buffarini on the left. To make matters worse, Diego González was injured in addittional time, further diminishing Banfield's chances of survival.

And when no one expected it, in the fifth minute of additional time, Luciano Lollo equalized with a double header in the penalty area, surprising Boca Juniors, forcing the match to penalties. In the shootout, the team coached by Miguel Angel Russo won the series 5–3, securing their 70th official title.[4]

Details

Boca Juniors
Banfield

Man of the Match:
Edwin Cardona (Boca Juniors)[8]

Assistant referees:
Juan Pablo Belatti
Hernán Maidana
Fourth official:
Nicolás Lamolina
Reserve assistant referee:
Cristian Navarro

Match rules[3]

  • 90 minutes
  • Penalty shoot-out if scores still level
  • Twelve named substitutes
  • Maximum of five substitutions

Statistics

Overall
Statistic Boca Juniors Banfield
Goals scored 11
Total shots 1112
Shots on target 75
Ball possession 50%50%
Corner kicks 24
Fouls committed 2116
Offsides 10
Yellow cards 51
Red cards 10

References

  1. ↑ "Banfield y Boca, finalistas" (in Spanish). Liga Profesional de Fútbol. 11 January 2021. Archived from the original on 15 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
  2. ↑ "Boca es el campeón" (in Spanish). Liga Profesional de Fútbol. 17 January 2021. Archived from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 "REGLAMENTO DE LA COPA DE LA LIGA PROFESIONAL DE FUTBOL DE AFA 2020" (PDF) (in Spanish). AFA. 26 October 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 Boca le ganó a Banfield por penales y es el campeón de la Copa Diego Maradona on TyCSports. 18 Jan 2021
  5. 1 2 3 Boca le ganó por penales a Banfield y se consagró campeón de la Copa Diego Maradona on Infobae. 17 Jan 2021
  6. ↑ "Conferencia de Seguridad por las finales" (in Spanish). Liga Profesional de Fútbol. 14 January 2021. Archived from the original on 17 January 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  7. ↑ "Árbitros para las finales" (in Spanish). Liga Profesional de Fútbol. 12 January 2021. Archived from the original on 12 January 2021. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  8. ↑ "Cardona, el jugador de Boca que no quiso ver los penales" (in Spanish). TyC Sports. 18 January 2021.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.