With the group stages of the Copa Libertadores 2016 getting under way last week we look at each entrant country by country beginning with Argentina.
Boca Juniors
Boca who were supposedly suspended for this tournament have been reinstated by CONMEBOL and now enter as favourites. Their suspension came after fans threw tear gas at River Plate players last year and the decision to reinstate the 6 times champions raises questions of the complex politics and lack of transparency in CONMEBOL decisions. On the field Boca fans hope returning idol Carlos Tevez and Pablo Osvaldo will provide the goals to win a record 7th Copa Libertadores title. The midfield hoping to service Tevez and Osvaldo is equally talented with young starlet Rodrigo Bentancur combining with the more experienced Nicholas Lodeiro and Fernando Gago to form a midfield full of creativity and experience. Defensively Boca’s weakness will be on the counter attack as 37 year old Cata Diaz has shown his age on a number of occasions in which Boca have been hit by breakaway goals.
Key player – Carlos Tevez
River Plate
The holders of the trophy are undeniably not the team they were 12 or 18 months ago when they appeared unbeatable. Since then the club has lost key players and have looked vulnerable defensively while lacking fluidity in attack winning only 1 out of the opening 4 games of the domestic season while conceding 6 goals in the 2 away games. The team is talented enough to challenge for the trophy and Marcelo Gallardo will be hoping new signing Andrés D’alessandro can form an understanding with Lucas Alario, Rodrigo Mora and the ever improving Gonzalo Martinez. Defensively however Eder Balanta has struggled to fill the shoes of now Everton defender Ramiro Funes Mori and the departure of Mattias Kranevitter has left a huge void in defensive midfield.
Key player – Marcelo Barovero
Rosario Central
Rosario central could well be dark horses to win the competition. Last season they came close to winning both the domestic title and cup playing the most enjoyable brand of football in the country. They have continued this fine form beating both Newells and Independiente comfortably by 2 goals to 0 while showing resilience to come back from 2 goals down against river. The addition of experienced defender Javier Pinola cements an already strong defence while they have two strikers that contribute real firepower. Marcos Rubén was out on his own as the leagues leading goal scorer last season while Marcelo Larrondo links the play well and has opened this season with 3 goals in 4 games.
Key player – Marcos Rubén
Racing Club
Racing fans will look back at last years campaign as a massive wasted opportunity to end the 50 year wait for Copa Libertadores glory. After narrowly losing to Guarani in Paraguay they had a fantastic chance to qualify in the second leg against a team with a poor away record however squandered the opportunity. Racing are another club who’s star quality lies in its strike force and will be dependent on the goals of Gustavo Bou and veteran strikers Lisandro Lopez and Diego Milito if they are to have success in the tournament. They made some seemingly good signings in the summer but an indifferent start to the season including a 5-0 loss to Newells suggests it is unlikely the long wait for Libertadores success is going to end this year.
Key player- Gustavo Bou
Huracan
The team that enters the tournament after their exploits in reaching the copa sudamericana final last year are on paper the weakest of the entrants from Argentina. The club only returned to the top flight just over a year ago and now find themselves in the continents premier competition after winning the Copa Argentina in 2014 and then performing admirably in the Sudamericana to reach the final, beating cross town rivals river plate on the way. They will hope their cup performances in recent years will continue however this could well be a step too high for the club from Parque Patricios.
Key player – Wanchope Àbila
San Lorenzo
The 2014 winners have performed consistently well the last few years and will have the rare advantage in South American terms of continuity as they begin this tournament with the same manager and by and large the same group of players of the last few years. This continuity almost lead to a domestic title last year when they finished runners up and have began this season strongly. They lack a bit of the star quality in attack that they had in 2014 but the strong spine and work ethic give them every opportunity to compete once again for a second victory in 3 years.
Key player – Julio Buffarini
2 Comments