After some dramatic quarter-final results in midweek, this weekend two mouthwatering games take place to decide who will play in the Copa de La Liga final. Saturday sees Boca Juniors take on undefeated Racing, whilst Tigre take on Argentinos Juniors on Sunday. Let’s dive into where each game will be won and lost.
Racing vs Boca Juniors – Estadio Ciudad de Lanús
Fernando Gago’s Racing defeated his former club Aldosivi on Tuesday 5-0, which included a hat-trick from Enzo Copetti. A few hours later, Boca Juniors defeated Defensa y Justicia 2-0 at La Bombonera, with goals from Sebastian Villa and Juan Ramírez.
👊 Goals from Sebastian Villa and Juan Ramirez sealed a ticket to the semi-finals for @BocaJrsOficial:
🔸 Fourth clean sheet in a row
🔸 14 shots
🔸 31 tackles
🔸 84.7% pass completionA showdown with @RacingClub awaits.#CopaDeLaLiga | #Bocahttps://t.co/ca1WvJa0Ti
— Genius Sports Report (@GSports_Report) May 11, 2022
Breaking it down…
Fernando Gago faces another of his former clubs in the play-offs as Racing take on a club where he had two stints as a player: Boca Juniors.
Racing like to dominate games and against Defensa y Justicia they had 61% of possession and 17 shots. Key to their style of play is their back four who kept out a Defensa team who had actually scored more goals than Racing in Group A with 26 goals.
At the heart of Racing’s defence is Leonardo Sigali, who in the group stage completed 731 passes with a pass completion rate of 87.7%. In Fecha 14 the top three best passers were all Racing players in Juan José Cáceres, Nery Domínguez and Jonatan Gómes with 101, 96 and 91 total passes respectively.
On current form Racing must be the favourites against Boca Juniors, as they remain the only undefeated side in the competition. Boca must hope Agustín Rossi is on form, the goalkeeper makes on average 3.3 saves per game. Rossi almost single-handedly won the Superclásico for Los Xeneizes by making numerous saves from River’s 7 shots on target.
A factor for Boca would be if Benedetto is firing. The striker has hit the ground running since returning to the club this season with 7 goals and 1 assist despite missing three matches through injury.
Key Player: Racing – Enzo Copetti
Copetti’s hat-trick in the quarter-finals showed how valuable he is to Fernando Gago’s side. He has performed consistently throughout the competition with 8 goals in total.
Key Player: Boca Juniors – Sebastian Villa
The Colombian has been ever present on the wing for Boca this season and has contributed massively with 5 goals and 5 assists. He has also scored important goals as well as scoring in the quarter-final he also scored the winner in the Superclásico.
Argentinos Juniors vs Tigre – Estadio Tomás Adolfo Ducó
Argentinos Juniors defeated Estudiantes 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw at the Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi on Wednesday, in a game that saw incredible drama. Elsewhere, Tigre shocked River Plate, beating them 2-1 at El Monumental thanks to a winning goal by Facundo Colidio.
🤯 @catigreoficial upset the champions! A shock 2-1 win sends @RiverPlate home.
📈 #Tigre ended the game with just 27% possession, 153 completed passes to #River‘s 532, and 7 less attempts on goal. A true smash-and-grab.
🇦🇷 #CopaDeLaLiga | #CopaBinance https://t.co/xIL2TtcF2j
— Genius Sports Report (@GSports_Report) May 12, 2022
Breaking it down…
Tigre’s quarter-final victory over River Plate came with them having just 27% possession. This shows how Diego Martínez are not afraid to soak up pressure but they can expect to have more of the ball against Argentinos. In the group stages Argentinos had an average possession of 58% which is 4% more than Tigre.
Ezequiel Fernández, the 19 year old on loan at Tigre from Boca Juniors has been an engine in midfield with 514 passes and a pass completion rate of 85.8% in the Copa de La Liga group stage. He could be the difference in controlling the game against Argentinos.
As for Argentinos, Gabriel Florentín in their crucial victory of Unión in Fecha 14 made 15 recoveries which was more than any other player in the round. Florentín could be the man to neutralise the threat of Tigre’s Fernández.
Argentinos’s defence deserves credit against Estudiantes as they only allowed the tournaments top-goalscorer Mauro Boselli who has 10 goals only get the better of them once as they stood firm to win 2-1.
Key Player: Argentinos Juniors – Gabriel Ávalos
The experienced Paraguayan forward had 5 goals and 4 assists in the competition and also smashed in his penalty in the shootout victory over Estudiantes.
Key Player: Tigre – Facundo Colidio
The young Argentine forward on loan from Inter Milan has often been played on the left-wing this season. He has still managed 2 goals and 2 assists. Colidio’s goal in the quarter-final showed great determination as he won the ball followed by a fine solo run and composed finish to see off River Plate.
