South America Soccer Review: Colombia Liga Aguila plays quarterfinals

Playoff battles, the gear-up to the Copa Libertadores finale and domestic title races dominate this week’s look at soccer news from across South America.

Before we get into the biggest stories of the past weekend throughout South America, let’s take a moment to look ahead to the matches coming up in the near future. There are some critical contests that will help determine title races and trophy winners throughout the continent.

On Wednesday, Alianza Lima can pull level with Melgar at the top of the Primera table in Peru if they beat San Martin ahead of the final matchday weekend. A 1-0 win pulls Alianza level with Melgar on points and on goal differential, while they can go ahead on goal differential with a multi-goal victory. Then the two teams both play on Nov. 25, Melgar at San Martin and Alianza at Binacional with the title on the line.

Then there is the Copa Libertadores final coming up on Saturday. Boca Juniors sit sixth in the Superliga Argentina table after a 1-0 victory over Patronato at La Bombonera on Saturday. Cristian Espinoza earned Los Xeneizes all three points on an 82nd-minute goal. River Plate, meanwhile, haven’t played a Superliga match since losing 1-0 at Estudiantes back on Nov. 3. Will the extra rest for River Plate help a club that already have an advantage with two away goals heading into the second Copa Libertadores leg on Saturday?

There are other championship races in the works as well in other parts of South America. Let’s start in the northern nations of Colombia and Venezuela this week, both of which are at various stages of playoff action this week, before finishing with a view of where things currently sit in Brazil’s Serie A race.

Colombia’s top teams wrapped up Liga Aguila quarterfinal action

Between Wednesday and Sunday, Colombia played out two quarterfinal legs for the top eight teams that emerged out of the Clausura. The first legs took place on Wednesday and Thursday, with the return legs held on Saturday and Sunday. Three of the four lower seeds in the bracket went through to the semifinals, so let’s look a little closer at each of the four encounters.

Independiente Medellin and Atletico Bucaramanga faced off in the first quarterfinal tilt, and both sides pitched shutouts at home. Independiente, as the No. 5 seed, held the first leg in Medellin and ran away with a 3-0 victory in the early match on Wednesday to set the pace. Juan Fernando Caicedo, Andres Ricaurte, and German Cano scored in the blowout at home. In the return match, Atletico attempted 23 shots, but they were unable to put more than two into the Independiente net on Saturday as the Medellin side advanced to the final four.

Deportes Tolima, who topped the table in the Torneo Finalizacion, were the only one of the top four seeds that managed to advance to the final four. Tolima went ahead 2-1 on the road in the first leg on Wednesday night in Santa Fe, but a 1-0 return performance by Independiente against Los Pijaos forced penalties. Tolima goalkeeper Alvaro Montero stopped the second Santa Fe attempt by Diego Guastavino, and then Carlos Henao booted his shot wide right. That was enough to send the Clausura leaders through to the semifinals.

Rionegro Aguilas, meanwhile, came in as the No. 7 seed in the quarterfinals and went through as they maintained their first-leg advantage. Their opponent, Once Caldas, fell 1-0 on the road in Rionegro on Thursday. The return leg in Manizales ended 1-1 on Sunday afternoon. Young defender David Alejandro Gomez leveled the matchup on aggregate in the 40th minute at home, but Rionegro went back ahead right before the intermission on Leandro Velazquez’s goal. The two clubs got chippy in the second half, as both sides saw a player sent off in the closing minutes.

In the final quarterfinal pairing, No. 6 Junior F.C. took down No. 3 La Equidad with a 1-0 aggregate scoreline. Junior scored the only goal of the series in the first leg at home, as Luis Fernando Diaz scored what proved to be the decisive goal in the 82nd minute. La Equidad attempted 17 shots in the return match, held 62 percent of the possession, and successfully completed 86 percent of their 561 passing attempts. But Sebastian Viera parried away everything that came toward his goal, and Junior ensured their advancement.

The brackets are not reseeded with each round in the Liga Aguila playoffs, so No. 1 Deportes Tolima square off against No. 5 Independiente Medellin in the semifinals while No. 6 Junior F.C. will pair off against No. 7 Rionegro Aguilas. The lower seeds host the opening legs of the semifinal series on Wednesday and Thursday, with the return legs on Nov. 24 and 25.

Venezuela close to crowning Clausura champion after final first leg

Staying in the northern regions of South America, only one match remains in the 2018 Primera Division season in Venezuela. Deportivo Lara and Deportivo La Guaira booked their passage through to the Clausura final after taking down Caracas and Deportivo Tachira respectively on Thursday.

Lara played out a scoreless draw at Estadio Metropolitano in Cabudare against visiting La Guaira on Sunday evening in the first leg of their final duel. Jesus Hernandez had a chance to put the hosts ahead in the 34th minute, but 18-year-old La Guairia goalkeeper Carlos Olses got his right hand on the penalty kick and parried away the attempt. Argentine striker Martin Batallini also had chances for Lara at home, but ultimately the two sides were deadlocked.

The return leg takes place on Wednesday in Caracas, as Deportivo La Guaira host the second leg at the Estadio Olimpico. A win by either side will seal the championship, while we could also see spot kicks determine the champion of the Clausura. Whichever team emerges victorious will earn a spot in next year’s Copa Libertadores and a matchup against Apertura champion Zamora to determine the overall champion in Venezuela for 2018.

Palmeiras maintains five-point lead with three matches to go in Brazil

It wasn’t a perfect result for Palmeiras, which missed an opportunity to extend their lead in the Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A standings with three matchdays left in the 2018 season. The side drew 1-1 at Parana, managing to land only a point despite generating 22 shots. The hosts went ahead in the first half, and only a 54th-minute Gustavo Scarpa penalty conversion got past Parana goalkeeper Thiago Rodrigues de Oliveira.

Internacional could have pulled within three points of Palmeiras. Instead, they fell 1-0 to Botafogo on Erik Lima’s 42nd-minute goal and dropped down to third in the table. In their place, Flamengo climbed up and took over the perch five points behind Palmeiras in second. The Mengao lost Lucas Paqueta to a red card an hour into the match at Sport Recife, but Flamengo still took three points thanks to Willian Arao’s 82nd-minute winner.

Gremio and Sao Paulo still technically have a chance at the title, as they each sit nine points behind Palmeiras with three matches left to play thanks to the draw by the leaders on Sunday. The Verdao are closing in on mathematical certainty in the title race, but they would have eliminated two more clubs with a win over Parana.