In Arruabarrena’s debut as coach, Boca Juniors defeated Vélez 3-1 in the Bombonera. Díaz, Meli and Chávez scored for the winner.
Beyond the substitutions of some players and the tactic, Boca’s new version showed sacrifice, dedication and commitment, completely different from the previous games.
The real change was made by the footballers, as Arruabarrena said after the match: “In two trainings we cannot modify anything”. However, following the departure of Carlos Bianchi, the team came round.
In the first half, the “Xeneize” generated several scoring chances, but the definition was not accurate: Marcelo Meli kicked tha ball close to the bar and Facundo Cardozo saved on the line the shot of Calleri. Vélez had different luck and scored in their only one opportunity, with an excellent cross shot made by Jorge Correa in the last minute.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiHx81cqKMw[/youtube]
Far from collapsing, Boca came out much more motivated in the second half. On the 56th minute, Daniel “Cata” Díaz tied the match. He headed from inside the penalty area to the right of the goal. Then, Meli, who was the best of the team, took advantage of a bad reaction of Sebastián Sosa and scored the second goal. Finally, Andrés Chávez sentenced the result with a powerful shot.
To beat Vélez, the leader of the tournament, Boca worked like a team. All players were committed to the cause, leaving their hearts and souls in each ball. Undoubtedly, this is the way to go forward.
The next match will be on September 4th at 9:15 p.m., against Central in Rosario, for the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana’s second round.
MATCH RECORD:
Boca Juniors (3): Agustín Orion; Leandro Marín, Mariano Echeverría, Daniel Díaz, Nicolás Colazo; Marcelo Meli (Gonzalo Castellani 77), Cristian Erbes; Luciano Acosta (Andrés Chávez 57), Fernando Gago, Federico Carrizo; Jonathan Calleri (Emmanuel Gigliotti 77). Coach: Rodolfo Arruabarrena.
Vélez Sarsfield (1): Sebastián Sosa; Fabián Cubero, Sebastián Domínguez, Facundo Cardozo (Roberto Nanni 87), Emiliano Papa; Leonardo Rolón (Lucas Romero 59), Leandro Desábato (Ramiro Cáseres 72), Alejandro Cabral, Jorge Correa; Lucas Pratto, Milton Caraglio. Coach: José Flores.
Goals: 44′ Jorge Correa (V), 56′ Daniel Díaz (B), 62′ Marcelo Meli (B) y 88′ Andrés Chávez (B).
Yellow cards: 20’ Sebastián Domínguez (V), 53’ Jonathan Calleri (B), 60’ Fabián Cubero, 69’ Daniel Díaz.
Red cards: 83’ Gonzalo Castellani.
Referee: Patricio Loustau.
Stadium: The Bombonera (Boca’s Stadium).
