Boca Juniors

Boca beats Mac TA in centenary match

2006-05-19T09:31:00.000-07:00

Argentinean champion Boca Juniors defeated Maccabi Tel Aviv 1-0 at Bloomfield Stadium on Thursday night in a friendly match celebrating the hosts' centenary.
Boca striker Martin Palermo, one of the few first team players to make the trip to Israel, scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot on the 76th minute.
Maccabi's 100th year was nothing short of disastrous and the loss was a fitting end for the yellow-and-blue who suffered from a season of lows and extreme lows.
A sizeable crowd attended the game, which was organized by Ben Gurion University, with all the proceeds from the match going towards scholarships for students at the institution.
Bloomfield was filled by thousands of Argentinean Israelis‚ who enjoyed every moment of their idols on the pitch.
The game was Tel Aviv coach Ton Caanen's last in charge of the yellow-and-blue after Maccabi's decision to appoint Eli Cohen in his place. Caanen addressed the fans before the match and said: "I want to say to the fans of Maccabi Toda Raba‚ for all their support. I hope you enjoyed your time with me because I enjoyed my time with you, despite Maccabi not having the season you expected."
Tel Aviv began its 100th season with a star studded lineup, which included Avi Nimni, Eyal Berkovic and Giovanni Rosso, with the clear objective of winning the league and cup double.
The team had a season from hell and could only manage a disappointing sixth place in the league and an early cup departure to inferior national league opposition.
Maccabi was hoping to at least end the season on a high and seized the initiative from the first whistle, almost taking the lead as early as the sixth minute. Striker Ofir Haim, playing his last match in the yellow-and-blue, had plenty of time in the Boca box but his shot was cleared off the line by the Argentinean defense.
Tel Aviv continued to go forward and moments later almost scored the first goal in the match. Giovani Rosso came inches from tapping in a cross that beat keeper Pablo Migliore but the ball passed the Croatian midfielder and the game remained scoreless.
In the 25th minute former Argentinean international Martin Palermo should have given his team the lead but his left foot shot ran just wide of the post.
Two minutes later Palermo came close once more. The striker attempted a bicycle kick to the delight of the crowd, but his shot was wide once again.
Tel Aviv controlled the majority of the possession in the first half and should have taken the lead in the 35th minute. Youngster Ori Shitrit took advantage of a Boca defensive mistake but was unable to beat keeper Migliore, shooting to the center of the goal.
The last chance to break the deadlock before half time fell to Boca midfielder Guillermo Marino who failed to score and shot straight at keeper Liran Strauber.
Both teams were clearly tired at the start of the second half with Boca having the better of the early play.
After 76 minutes the deadlock was finally broken. Guillermo Barros Schelotto was brought down in the box and Palermo blasted Boca into the lead from the penalty spot. Maccabi was unable to level the score and lost the match, but can at least comfort itself that its hellish season is over.

Boca defeats Olimpo

2006-05-15T10:19:00.000-07:00

Boca Juniors capped its Argentine Apertura championship by defeating Olimpo Bahia Blanca 2-0 in the last round on Sunday at Bombonera stadium.Matias Silvestre scored off a header in the 14th minute and Rodrigo Palacio made it 2-0 in the 59th for a seventh straight win for Boca, which won the tournament last week.It was Boca's fourth cup in less than a year, after the South American Recopa and Copa Sudamericana, and the Clausura championship.Boca ended with 43 points, followed by Lanus with 35, River Plate with 34, Gimnasia Jujuy on 33, and Gimnasia La Plata at 32.River Plate defeated host Quilmes 3-1 in a match which was suspended in the 67th minute because of fan violence.Boca, Gimnasia La Plata, River, Banfield and Velez will play in the 2007 Copa Libertadores. The same teams plus Lanus and San Lorenzo will strive to wrest the Sudamericana from defending champion Boca.Instituto and Tiro Federal were relegated to second division.Argentinos Juniors and Olimpo will play with two teams from second division, and the two winners of the home-and-away series will play in the first division next season.

Basile nears deal with Boca Juniors

2006-05-11T11:17:00.000-07:00

Boca Juniors manager Alfio Basile said Wednesday he was close to renewing his contract for another season, days after the Buenos Aires soccer powerhouse won its fourth major title under his leadership.
Since joining the side in June, Basile has coached Boca to victory in the Recopa and Sudamericana championships. His team also has won the Argentine first-division Apertura title to close 2005 and the Clausura championship on Sunday. "I think I"m going to continue," Basile told local reporters this week. "I say 'I think' to be safe, because we're lacking some things, details that we have to improve to strengthen the roster."
Boca president Mauricio Macri also sounded upbeat about Basile extending his contract.
"Both parties are willing. The economic part is resolved," said Macri, who refused to discuss financial details.
Local news reports suggested Basile, whose one-year contract with Boca ends in June, would receive a 30 percent raise. But the club has neither confirmed nor denied those accounts amid reports of plans for a news conference Thursday.
Despite the victories, Basile still has faced difficulties winning over Boca fans reluctant to forget Carlos Bianchi, the winningest coach in the team's history.
Unlike Bianchi, Basile's name was never chanted by the fans in the stands known for their to-the-death loyalty to the club.
"It's always difficult to get recognition in Boca. Even for Bianchi, who won everything, it was hard," Basile said.
According to an online opinion survey published Tuesday in Argentina's leading newspaper, Clarin, 57.8 percent said they felt Basile would be unable to win more titles than Bianchi.
Of some 20,000 respondents to the survey for Clarin Digital, some 42.2 percent predicted he would surpass Bianchi. No margin of error was reported for the poll.
Voted the world's best club coach in 2000 and 2003 by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics, Bianchi won four domestic championships, three Copa Libertadores and two Intercontinental Cups during two spells in charge of Boca Juniors. He also led another Argentine team, Velez Sarsfield, to the Copa Libertadores and Intercontinental Cup titles in 1994.

Boca wins second straight title

2006-05-08T10:52:00.000-07:00

Boca Juniors won its second straight and 23rd Argentine league title Sunday, clinching the Clausura championship with a 2-0 victory over Independiente to take a six-point lead over second-place Lanus with one round remaining.
This triumph was Boca's fourth championship since Alfio Basile took over as coach in July, adding to the South American Recopa and Copa Sudamericana titles and last year's Argentine Apertura crown.

Abbondonziari Promises Top Form

2006-05-05T10:36:00.000-07:00

Argentina keeper Roberto Abbondonziari says he is over a patch of rough showings and will be at his best during World Cup 2006.
The Boca Juniors man has received pans for his play in recent months – admittedly, with good reason.
"I think that after the friendly against Croatia, where a lot of things were said about me, I got it into my head that I had to be as relaxed as possible," explained Abbondonziari.
"In the last few games, I've had the confidence that every goalkeeper needs to have and the results can be seen on the pitch."
"I feel that I am good enough to be defending the goal for the national side," he declared.
"I'll get to the World Cup at the perfect moment."

Croat-Argentine soccer forward dreams of Argentine World Cup place

2006-05-04T11:04:00.000-07:00

Winger Daniel Bilos, who plays for Argentine league team Boca Juniors, told sports broadcaster TyC Sports on Wednesday that he still dreams of being called up for Argentina's World Cup team.
The World Cup, "is a dream I hope comes true, although it is difficult. There is not much time left and the manager has little time to try out new players," he said.
Bilos, 25, has rejected the call up from Croatia, where his grandparents were born, despite repeated entreaties from Croatia national soccer team manager Zlakto Kranjcar.
Bilos played 45 minutes of November's friendly Argentina, Qatarmatch, in the Qutari capital, Doha, but his performance has suffered since that date and he was never summoned by Pekerman.
However, on Sunday, when Boca massacred Estudiantes 4-0, Bilos showed the form he had shown when he first arrived at Boco, tranferred from Banfield, in the middle of 2005.
"I had a bad patch, but these things happen to everyone. The same thing happened to me in Banfield, but it was not so imporant. Luckily, things began to turn out for me again when I got to Boca.I hope to stay this way," he said.

Four-goal Boca close in on Argentine title

2006-05-02T07:55:00.001-07:00

Boca Juniors , thriving without the distraction of the Libertadores Cup, closed in on the Argentine title with an emphatic 4-0 win over Estudiantes on Sunday. Boca, who have 37 points from 17 games, are four points clear of Lanus with two matches each to play in the Clausura championship and six ahead of River, who dropped to third after drawing 3-3 with Gimnasia-La Plata.
Boca got a helping hand as both Estudiantes and River rested their top players ahead of Libertadores Cup ties next week.
Midfielder Federico Insua broke the deadlock for Boca in the 20th minute when he left two defenders in his wake before scoring with a left-foot shot.
Insua also added the third in the second half with Rodrigo Palacio and veteran Guillermo Barros Schelotto helping themselves to the other goals.
'At times, we played brilliantly,' said coach Alfio Basile. 'It was the sort of football people like to see.'
River were denied a win when Uruguayan striker Gonzalo Vargas scored an injury-time equaliser for Gimnasia.
Gimnasia had gone ahead when Martin Cardetti scored against his own club in the 16th minute before Gonzalo Higuain and a Rubens Sambueza penalty put River 2-1 ahead.
Roberto Cornejo levelled in the 57th minute and Jeronimo Morales put River back in front with nine minutes left.

Boca Taking Control Of Argentine League

2006-04-28T12:13:00.000-07:00

Boca Juniors odds made a break for their 23rd championship with a strong away victory over rivals Vélez Sarsfield. The result sees the Xeneizes widen the gap between them and their Millonario nemesis to four points – with only nine points left in play.
Martin Palermo was the star as he brought Boca out of the 0-1 hole, then nailed the game-winner late to save his club.
With 34 points, Boca controls its own destiny in the local tournament, with four weeks left.
Velez can look forward to the Copa Libertadores, as their chances in the Argentine league are all but finished.

River edge Corinthians in five-goal thriller

2006-04-27T11:54:00.000-07:00

River Plate drew first blood in their Libertadores Cup third round tie with Corinthians on Wednesday, winning 3-2 at home in a game of stunning goals, red cards and controversial decisions.
The first leg match, pitting one of Argentina's top clubs against the reigning Brazilian champions, had all the ingredients for drama and fully lived up to its billing.
River coach Daniel Passarella was facing a side who sacked him 15 games into a one-year contract last year while the game had a very different meanings for Javier Mascherano and Carlos Tevez, the two Argentines in the Corinthians line-up.
Mascherano, giving a rousing reception, was playing against the club where was raised while Tevez, who previously played for River's arch-rivals Boca Juniors spreads, was facing the side he loves to hate.
Sent off two years ago for a provocative goal celebration in the same stadium during his Boca days, Tevez was jeered from the outset, but he silenced the crowd in the 15th minute with a brilliant goal.
After collecting the ball on the left of the penalty area, he glided past two defenders and fired a low shot into the bottom corner from 25 metres.
However, River recovered from the shock and hit back with two superb goals of their own in four minutes.
Forward Ernesto Farias equalised with a bicycle kick in the 26th minute before right wing-back Paulo Ferrari scored with an even more spectacular effort.
After popping up on unexpectedly on the left, Ferrari left three defenders in his wake before slipping the ball under Silvio Luiz.
Ironically, Ferrari should have been sent off for a shocking lunge on Mascherano in the 21st minute but instead escaped with a yellow card.
The drama continued after halftime.
Tevez had the ball in the net again in the 58th minute only to see his effort disallowed for offside and the Brazilians were unlucky again when Coelho hit the post.
Their troubles deepened when Mascherano was sent off for a second bookable offence.
Jonathan Santana scrambled a third for River in the 81st minute but Corinthians scored a potentially decisive second away goal when Xavier headed home unmarked in injury-time.
In between, River had defender Leonardo Talamonti sent off.
Earlier, Palmeiras and defending champions Sao Paulo shared 63 fouls and two goals in an all-Brazilian tie.
Aloisio fired Sao Paulo in front in the 22nd minute after pouncing on a mistake by Paraguay defender Carlos Gamarra.
Palmeiras, who sacked coach Emerson Leao two days earlier, equalised when Edmundo converted a penalty 14 minutes later after Souza was controversially judged to have deliberately handled the ball.

Tevez transfer speculation dismissed

2006-04-25T08:04:00.000-07:00

No club can afford to buy the contract of Corinthians striker Carlos Tevez, or at least the price the Brazilian club and its financial partner that own his contract would ask for.
"No one has the money to buy Carlitos. No one has the price. He is the best player in the world," said Kia Joorachian, president of Corinthians' financial partner Media Sports Investment (MSI).
Joorachian's comments on Monday to Fox Sports television come amid repeated reports of interest in the 22-year-old Argentine forward by European clubs and two days before Corinthians plays River Plate in the first leg of the second round of the Copa Libertadores.
Without specifying a price, Joorachian dismissed speculation that Corinthians would transfer Tevez, because it "would not have anyone to replace him."
MSI paid a Brazilian record US$19.5 million (€15.8 million) to transfer Tevez from Argentina's Boca Juniors odds in 2004, a transaction that was widely criticized as being overpriced. Tevez had led Boca to the 2003 Copa Libertadores title and scored a tournament leader eight goals in pacing Argentina to the 2004 Olympic gold medal.
The criticism was muted after Tevez scored 19 goals and helped Corinthians to last year's Brazilian crown, its fourth title and first since 1999.

Palermo heads Boca back to the top in Argentina

2006-04-18T10:58:00.000-07:00

Boca Juniors went back to the top of the Argentine Clausura championship on Sunday with a 1-0 win over Arsenal while River Plate were held to a goalless draw at San Lorenzo.
Boca, who have 31 points from 15 games, have a two-point lead over River with four games to play after former Villareal striker Martin Palermo headed the only goal in the 73rd minute. Arsenal finished with 10 men after Victor Lopez was sent off in the last minute. River, who had defender Cristian Tula sent off for a second bookable offence in the 57th minute, were outplayed by San Lorenzo but escaped with a point, thanks to goalkeeper German Lux.
“We played badly and we were glad for a draw,” said River coach Daniel Passarella. “We have to improve on a number of fronts if we want to keep fighting for the championship.”
Newell’s Old Boys, who have 28 points, moved into third place after beating Instituto 2-1 away, overtaking Lanus and Gimnasia-Jujuy, who both lost at home.
Lanus went down 2-0 to arch-rivals Banfield and Gimnasia suffered a shock 1-0 defeat against bottom-of-the-table Racing Club, who had won only one of their 14 previous games.

Red Bulls to face Barcelona

2006-04-12T07:30:00.000-07:00

After years of watching Brazilian superstar Ronaldinho work his magic on television, area soccer fans will get their chance to see him play in person against none other than the New York Red Bulls.
According to sources within MLS, FC Barcelona and the Red Bulls will play each other in a friendly at Giants Stadium on Aug. 12. Red Bulls president Alexi Lalas confirmed the news after the team's finalized the agreement on Tuesday. "Red Bull is committed to providing not only quality domestic soccer, but also quality international soccer," Lalas said. "You can't get much better than Barcelona. Our entire organization is excited about the opportunity to play one of the premier teams in the world."
The Red Bulls are the only MLS team Barcelona will play when the Spanish League champions tour the United States this summer. According to league sources, Barcelona will also play a pair of Mexican teams during its tour, which will be organized by Soccer United Marketing, a branch of MLS.
Barcelona's last appearance at Giants Stadium came in 1984 when the Catalans lost to the Cosmos, 5-3, in a match that featured Argentine legend Diego Maradona playing for Barcelona. This time around, Barcelona's trip to Giants Stadium will mark the first appearance in New Jersey for Ronaldinho, the reigning world player of the year, as well as the first appearance for Argentine star Lionel Messi. Barcelona also features African player of the year Samuel Eto'o, Spanish defender Carlos Puyol and Mexican national team captain Rafael Marquez.
The Red Bulls will look to have a good showing against Barcelona similar to the ones put forth by the Chicago Fire against AC Milan and D.C. United against Chelsea last summer. AC Milan defeated Chicago, 3-1, in a tightly-contested match the Italian club won with two late goals, while Chelsea need a pair of second half goals to defeated D.C., 2-1.
"If you want to become a super club you have to be ready to play against super clubs," Lalas said. "In the past couple of years, we've seen a mentality that has emerged that our players aren't on the field to get autographs. It's an opportunity to prove what we've been shouting from the rooftops for a long time, that we've been producing quality players and we can play with the best teams in the world."
News of Barcelona's tour comes six months after the club's president took a tour of the United States, sparking rumors that the club was interested in purchasing an MLS franchise.
The match could push to be a sellout, with Ronaldinho, Messi, Marquez and Portuguese national team star Deco all drawing considerable interest from local fans. Barcelona is the first Spanish club to play at Giants Stadium since Real Madrid played AS Roma to a scoreless tie on Aug. 8, 2002. More than 70,000 fans attended that match and at least that many are expected to watch Barcelona, especially if Ronaldinho is healthy and set to play in the match.
Founded in 1899, Barcelona has won 17 Spanish League championships, including last year, and is currently in first place. Barcelona is also currently in the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League tournament, where it will face AC Milan. The club last appeared in the United States in 2003 when it played Juventus, AC Milan and Manchester United as part of the ChampionsWorld Tour. The club has flourished in recent years since the arrival of Ronaldinho from French club Paris St. Germain.
The match will be the first against top European competition since Red Bull purchased the club formerly known as the MetroStars. During its 10 years as the MetroStars, the club played European powers AC Milan and Bayern Munich as well as Argentine power Boca Juniors.

River, Boca win, retain lead with five games to play

2006-04-10T11:42:00.000-07:00

Boca Juniors and River Plate, the archrivals of Argentine soccer, won their respective games to retain the lead of the Clausura championship on Sunday.
With five rounds to go, River and Boca have 28 points, one more than Lanus -- which defeated former leader Newell's on Friday -- two more than Gimnasia Jujuy, and three ahead of Newell's. League top striker Ernesto Farias scored twice as River Plate beat Instituto 3-1. Instituto was relegated to second division.
Victor Zapata put River ahead with a superb 30-meter shot in the 13th minute, and Walter Zunino scored the equalizer in the 39th. Farias converted a penalty kick in the 60th, and clinched the win after a corner kick in the 72nd.
At Colon stadium in Santa Fe, Boca beat the hosts 2-1.
Boca got the advantage with an own goal by defender Horacio Ameli in the 12th, and Rodrigo Palacio made it 2-0 in the 24th. Franco Cangele shortened the lead in the 57th.
In Friday's game, Santiago Biglieri and Cristian Fabbiani scored for Lanus to defeat Newell's 2-1. Nicolas Spolli halved the lead near the end.
On Saturday, Sergio Aguero scored twice in the last 10 minutes and Independiente defeated Velez Sarsfield 2-0. Aguero, 17, is considered a future national team player, though possibly not for this year's World Cup.
Tiro Federal was relegated to second division after a 1-0 loss to San Lorenzo on Saturday. Gimnasia Jujuy trounced Estudiantes 4-0 and Olimpo held host Arsenal to a scoreless draw. Elsewhere it was; Racing 0, Gimnasia La Plata 1; Quilmes 2, Argentinos Juniors 1 and Banfield 2, Rosario Central 0.

Documentary on legendary soccer rivalries

2006-04-07T12:25:00.000-07:00

FIFA World Cup in June-July, a four-part documentary on leading soccer rivalries titled 'Heights of Passion' is to be aired on 'Ten Sports channel later this month.Each of the four 52-minute episodes focuses on two particular clubs and the intense rivalry between them in Spain, Italy, Argentina and Brazil, a media release said today.The episodes are to be aired at 9 pm (IST) on April 7 followed by the others over the next three Fridays till April 28.While the inter-club Italian rivalry features AC Milan and Inter Milan, in Spain the focus would be on Barcelona and Real Madrid, besides the Boca Juniors-River Plate rivalry of Argentina and the Vasco-Flamengo contests of Brazil.The episodes would lay emphasise on the culture and history of these football clubs and the rivalries involved in these derby clashes, the release added.

Three-Way Tie In Argentine League

2006-04-05T14:22:00.000-07:00

For the second weekend in a row Boca Juniors played with nine men, but still managed to beat Banfield 2-1 at home on Sunday.
Lanus hammered River Plate 4-1 while Newell's Old Boys held arch-rivals Rosario Central 0-0. Consequently, River, Boca and Newell's are now tied at the top of the Clausura championship with 25 points in 13 games.
Boca took the lead in the 15th minute when Banfield defender Marcos Galarza deflected Martin Palermo's shot into his own net.
Banfield's fortunes changed in the 50th minute when Daniel Diaz was ejected for handling a goal-bound shot on the line, and Jose Datolo fired home the penalty to level the score.
In the 72nd minute, Boca midfielder Federico Insua was issued a second yellow card for diving, leaving his team with nine men.
However, Banfield failed to take advantage and Boca won the game in the last minute when Hugo Ibarra's long-range shot caught goalkeeper Cristian Lucchetti off guard.
“The team was extraordinary, it's not any team that can do this,” said Boca coach Alfio Basile.

Boca Junior

2006-04-04T11:12:00.000-07:00

Diego gave Gary a terrific interview, conducted in Spanish, covering the football, the cocaine, the recovery and ducking no aspects of his life. He spoke of tournaments, championships, Burruchaga and Butcher, Reid and Rooney. He thinks England stand a chance in June. The respect between the two former opponents was transparent. What also shone through was Maradona's love for Dalma and Giannina - the daughters he contends saved his life and who give him purpose. Then it was off in the Maradona family car to the wonderful Bombonera stadium to see Boca play Quilmes. River Plate and Independiente had drawn earlier in the day and victory would take the blue-and-yellows top. They duly delivered with a 3-1 win and some of the film's outstanding moments.

Nine-man Boca victorious

2006-04-03T07:16:00.000-07:00

Boca Juniors had two players sent off for the second weekend in a row but still managed to beat Banfield 2-1 in the Argentina championship on Sunday (Monday AEDT). Lanus hammered River Plate 4-1 while Newell's Old Boys held arch-rivals Rosario Central 0-0. River, Boca and Newell's are now level at the top of the Clausura championship with 25 points from 13 games. Boca went ahead in the 15th minute when Banfield defender Marcos Galarza deflected Martin Palermo's shot into his own net. The game seemed to turn Banfield's way in the 50th minute when Daniel Diaz handled Jose Sand's goal-bound shot on the line and was sent off. Jose Datolo fired home the penalty to equalise. In the 72nd minute, Boca midfielder Federico Insua was given a second yellow card for diving, leaving his team with nine men. But Banfield failed to capitalise and Boca snatched a last-minute winner when Hugo Ibarra's long-range shot caught goalkeeper Cristian Lucchetti out of position. "The team was extraordinary, it's not any team that can do this," said Boca coach Alfio Basile. "The refereeing today was a disaster and I'm not just blaming the referee, but also the linesmen." River, unbeaten in their last 10 matches, found themselves 3-0 down at halftime away to Lanus. Sebastian Leto fired Lanus in front with their first real attack in the 20th minute, Danilo Gerlo headed into his own net and then Agustin Pelletieri made it 3-0 a minute before the break. Ernesto Farias tapped in from close range to the reduce the deficit six minutes after the re-start but Cristian Fabbiani restored Lanus's three-goal advantage in the 75th minute.

Boca's Palermo denies River Plater at the last

2006-03-27T06:56:00.000-08:00

Martin Palermo converted a controversial 89th minute penalty as nine-man Boca Juniors snatched a dramatic 1-1 draw against eternal rivals River Plate in their Argentine derby on Sunday.
But the weekend's football was marred when Independiente's game at home to Banfield was called off after visiting coach Carlos Leeb was hit by an object thrown from the crowd.
Referee Rafael Furchi sent the players to the dressing rooms after Leeb appeared to be struck in the face in the 83rd minute. His team were winning 2-1.
The Argentina Football Association (AFA) is expected to meet next week to decide what action to take.
At Boca's Bombonera stadium, Palermo salvaged a point for the defending champions when he sent River goalkeeper German Lux the wrong way after substitute Guillermo Barros Schelotto had appeared to fall over without being touched.
River took a 39th minute lead through Ernesto Farias, who caught goalkeeper Roberto Abbondanzieri off his line and scored with a clever chip.
Abbondanzieri, Argentina's first-choice goalkeeper, continued his bad afternoon when he was sent off for tripping goalward-bound Marcelo Gallardo in the 66th minute.
In a match which pitted former Argentina coaches Alfio Basile and Daniel Passarella against each other, Boca's fate appeared to be sealed when full-back Juan Krupoviesa was sent off in the 83rd minute for an awful foul on Daniel Montenegro.
But Boca were given new life two minutes later when River defender Cristian Tula was dismissed for a challenge on Barros Schelotto.
'We had the game in our hands but we couldn't do it,' said frustrated River coach Passarella.
River had begun the weekend at the top of the Clausura championship with Boca one point behind in second place.
Their stalemate allowed Newell's Old Boys to leap-frog both teams and go top with a 2-0 win at Olimpo.
Claudio Husain gave Newell's a first half lead and former Argentina forward Ariel Ortega added the second with a 64th minute penalty.
Newell's have 23 points from 11 games, one ahead of River and two more than Boca Juniors and Gimnasia-Jujuy.
Gimnasia-Jujuy continued their excellent campaign with a 3-1 win over Argentinos Juniors, Israel Damonte, Franco Sosa, from a penalty, and Matias Oyola scoring the goals.
At the other end of the table, Racing Club stayed bottom when they were beaten 1-0 at Instituto. Racing have only three points from eleven games and have yet to win a game.
Rosario Central picked up their first win under new coach Leonardo Astrada when they beat Tiro Federal 3-0. Goals from defenders Gabriel Loeschbor and German Rivarola put Central 2-0 up and striker Pablo Vitti added the third.

Boca beats Quilmes 3-1, takes lead in Argentine soccer

2006-03-15T09:28:00.000-08:00

Defending champion Boca Juniors trounced Quilmes 3-1 Sunday and took the lead after nine rounds of the Argentine Clausura soccer championship.
Former leader and Boca arch-rival River Plate fell to second place after a 1-1 tie with Independiente in Sunday's derby, and Newell's Old Boys, the other leader, fell 2-1 to Estudiantes de La Plata and took third place.
At Boca's Bombonera stadium, Daniel Diaz opened the scoring with a curling free kick in the 16th minute and Federico Insua made it 2-0 in the 27th. Quilmes striker Silvio Carrario closed the gap in the last minute of the first half, but Martin Palermo scored the clincher in the 81st.
With a goal by juvenile star Sergio Aguero 50 seconds into the second half, Independiente tied with River Plate 1-1.
Victor Zapata scored for River in first-half injury time, heading in a cross from Gonzalo Higuain.
Boca has 19 points, River 18, Newell's 17, Velez Sarsfield and Colon 16.
In La Plata stadium, defender Gaston Aguirre headed in the ball from a corner kick in the 11th for Newell's. But Mariano Pavone in the 27th and Pablo Luguercio in the second half overturned the score in favor of Estudiantes, which had lost the three previous games.
In Saturday's games, a spectacular goal by Emanuel Fernandes Francou in the 33rd minute gave Velez Sarsfield a 1-0 home victory over Banfield. Velez, a contender for the championship, moved into fourth place jointly with Colon.
In other games Saturday it was: Rosario Central 1, Racing 1; Arsenal 1, Colon 1; and Lanus 2, Gimnasia La Plata 1, while in Friday's game San Lorenzo got a valuable away victory over Gimnasia Jujuy 1-0.

Boca pile on Racing misery

2006-03-08T14:17:00.000-08:00

Boca Juniors beat Racing Club 3-0 to hand them a third successive defeat since former Argentina captain Diego Simeone took over as coach. Racing, bottom of the Clausura championship with one point from eight games, have yet to score since Simeone brought forward his retirement as a player to become coach. After a dour first half, a Federico Insua-inspired Boca took control after half-time. Insua set up the first for Martin Palermo two minutes into the second half and scored the second himself with a superbly-taken effort in the 67th minute. Martin Delgado latched onto a backheel from Daniel Bilos and broke down the left before slotting home the third with 10 minutes left. The win took defending champions Boca into third place on 16 points, one point behind River Plate and Newell's Old Boys. Daniel Passarella's River Plate, who lead on goal difference, came from behind to beat Estudiantes 3-1 while a second-half goal from Fernando Belluschi gave Newell's a 1-0 win over Velez Sarsfield. Peruvian midfielder Juan Cominges gave Estudiantes a fourth-minute lead, which was cancelled out by striker Gonzalo Higuain 14 minutes later. Cristian Tula touched home Victor Zapata's cross from close-range in the 49th minute and Ernesto Farias scored against his old club with one minute to play. Colon dropped to fourth following a surprise 2-0 home defeat against Gimnasia-Jujuy, who went level on points with them. Gustavo Balvorin headed Gimnasia in front in the 26th minute and Matias Oyola's superbly-taken free kick made it 2-0 in the 65th.