2018 Copa Libertadores Finals

The 2018 Copa Libertadores Finals was the two-legged final to decide the winners of the 2018 Copa Libertadores, the 59th edition of the Copa Libertadores, South America's premier international club football tournament organised by CONMEBOL.

2018 Copa Libertadores Finals
Event2018 Copa Libertadores
Boca Juniors River Plate
3 5
on aggregate
First leg
Boca Juniors River Plate
2 2
Date11 November 2018 (2018-11-11)[note 1]
VenueEstadio Alberto J. Armando, Buenos Aires
RefereeRoberto Tobar (Chile)
Second leg
River Plate Boca Juniors
3 1
After extra time
Date9 December 2018 (2018-12-09)[note 2]
VenueSantiago Bernabéu, Madrid, Spain [note 3]
RefereeAndrés Cunha (Uruguay)

The finals were contested in a two-legged home-and-away format between Argentine clubs Boca Juniors and River Plate, making it the first Superclásico final of an international competition. The first leg was hosted by Boca Juniors at the Estadio Alberto J. Armando in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 11 November 2018, while the second leg took place outside South America at the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid, Spain (a neutral venue) on 9 December 2018.[1][2] This was the last final to take place over two legs, as starting from 2019 the final would be played as a single match at a venue chosen in advance.[3][4]

The second leg was originally to be hosted by River Plate at the Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on 24 November 2018. However, due to safety concerns resulting from the attack on the bus of Boca Juniors prior to the match, the second leg was moved outside of Argentina and South America, later confirmed to be the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid, Spain.[5] This was the first time that the second leg of the Copa Libertadores final has been held outside of South America, and the first final held outside of the Americas.

River Plate won the final 5–3 on aggregate for their fourth Copa Libertadores title. As winners, they qualified as the CONMEBOL representative at the 2018 FIFA Club World Cup in the United Arab Emirates, entering in the semi-finals. They also earned the right to play against the winners of the 2018 Copa Sudamericana in the 2019 Recopa Sudamericana.[6] River Plate also automatically qualified for the group stage of the 2019 Copa Libertadores.

Due to the intense rivalry between Boca and River, the match was referred to as the "Superfinal",[7] and "the Final to end all Finals".[8] The press called it the "most important final in Argentina's football history".[9] According to Richard Martin, a Reuters reporter, River's win "guarantees them bragging rights over their neighbours for many years to come".[10]

Teams
Team Previous finals appearances (bold indicates winners)
Boca Juniors 10 (1963, 1977, 1978, 1979, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2012)
River Plate 5 (1966, 1976, 1986, 1996, 2015)

For the third time, two teams from the same country faced each other in the final, after Brazilian teams met in the 2005 and 2006 finals. It was the first all-Argentine final of the Copa Libertadores, as well as the first final to feature two teams from the same city.[11] The 2018 finals marked the first time that the Superclásico was contested in the Copa Libertadores final (or any final of an international competition), and the third time that the two clubs have met in a final, after the 1976 Nacional championship final and the 2017 Supercopa Argentina.[12]

Their most recent meeting in the Copa Libertadores had been in the 2015 round of 16, where Boca Juniors were disqualified and the tie awarded to River Plate, after River Plate players were attacked in la Bombonera stadium with pepper spray by Boca Juniors fans when the squad returned to the field following halftime of the second leg, when River were leading on aggregate 1–0.[13][14]

Venues
The Estadio Alberto J. Armando in Buenos Aires, Argentina, hosted the first leg.
The Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid, Spain, hosted the second leg.

Road to the final
Further information: 2018 Copa Libertadores

Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).

Boca Juniors Round River Plate
Opponent Result Group stage Opponent Result
Alianza Lima 0–0 (A) Matchday 1 Flamengo 2–2 (A)
Junior 1–0 (H) Matchday 2 Santa Fe 0–0 (H)
Palmeiras 1–1 (A) Matchday 3 Emelec 1–0 (A)
Palmeiras 0–2 (H) Matchday 4 Emelec 2–1 (H)
Junior 1–1 (A) Matchday 5 Santa Fe 1–0 (A)
Alianza Lima 5–0 (H) Matchday 6 Flamengo 0–0 (H)
Group H runners-up
Pos Team Pld Pts
1 Palmeiras 6 16
2 Boca Juniors 6 9
3 Junior 6 7
4 Alianza Lima 6 1
Source: CONMEBOL
 Final standings Group D winners
Pos Team Pld Pts
1 River Plate 6 12
2 Flamengo 6 10
3 Santa Fe 6 7
4 Emelec 6 1
Source: CONMEBOL
Opponent Agg. 1st leg 2nd leg Final stages Opponent Agg. 1st leg 2nd leg
Libertad 6–2 2–0 (H) 4–2 (A) Round of 16 Racing 3–0 0–0 (A) 3–0 (H)
Cruzeiro 3–1 2–0 (H) 1–1 (A) Quarter-finals Independiente 3–1 0–0 (A) 3–1 (H)
Palmeiras 4–2 2–0 (H) 2–2 (A) Semi-finals Grêmio 2–2 (a) 0–1 (H) 2–1 (A)

Format

The final was planned to be played on a home-and-away two-legged basis, with the higher-seeded team (River Plate) hosting the second leg. The away goals rule was not applied, and extra time would be played if the aggregate score was tied after the second leg. If the aggregate score was still tied after extra time, a penalty shoot-out would have been used to determine the winner. If extra time was played, a fourth substitution would have been allowed.[6]

Matches

First leg

Summary

The first leg of the final was originally scheduled for 7 November, with the second leg on 28 November 2018 (both on Wednesdays).[15] However, after the finalists were known, CONMEBOL adjusted the dates, with the first leg (hosted by Boca Juniors, the lower seed) on 10 November and the second leg (hosted by River Plate, the higher seed) on 24 November (both Saturdays at 16:00 local time).[1] The Argentine Football Association opposed the date change. Following discussion, the final was moved to 17:00 local time.[2] The first leg was postponed less than two hours before kickoff due to Boca Junior's pitch at the Estadio Alberto J. Armando being waterlogged due to local flooding.[16] The match was rescheduled for the following day, 11 November, with the kickoff moved to 16:00 local time.[17][18] The game was goalless until the 34th minute mark, when Ramón Ábila put Boca ahead, only for Lucas Pratto to equalise 90 seconds later.[19] Dario Benedetto then restored Boca's lead, to make the score 2–1 at half-time. However, the game was to end all square at 2–2 after Carlos Izquierdoz scored an own goal for River plate in the 61st minute.[19][20]

Details
Boca Juniors 2–2 River Plate
 Report
Referee: Roberto Tobar (Chile)
Boca Juniors
River Plate
GK12 Agustín Rossi
RB29 Leonardo Jara 37' 83'
CB21 Carlos Izquierdoz
CB6 Lisandro Magallán
LB20 Lucas Olaza
CM15 Nahitan Nández
CM16 Wílmar Barrios
CM8 Pablo Pérez (c)
RW22 Sebastián Villa 43' 73'
CF17 Ramón Ábila 48'
LW7 Cristian Pavón 27'
Substitutes:
GK28 Carlos Lampe
DF2 Paolo Goltz
DF24 Julio Buffarini 83'
MF5 Fernando Gago
FW18 Darío Benedetto 27'
FW19 Mauro Zárate
FW23 Carlos Tevez 90+5' 73'
Manager:
Guillermo Barros Schelotto
GK1 Franco Armani
CB2 Jonatan Maidana (c)
CB28 Lucas Martínez Quarta 58'
CB22 Javier Pinola
RWB29 Gonzalo Montiel
LWB20 Milton Casco 67'
CM15 Exequiel Palacios
CM24 Enzo Pérez 75'
CM10 Pity Martínez 77'
CF19 Rafael Santos Borré 75'
CF27 Lucas Pratto
Substitutes:
GK14 Germán Lux
MF5 Bruno Zuculini 75'
MF8 Juan Fernando Quintero 77'
MF18 Camilo Mayada
MF26 Ignacio Fernández 58'
FW7 Rodrigo Mora
FW9 Julián Álvarez
Manager:
Matías Biscay[note 4]

Assistant referees:[21]
Christian Schiemann (Chile)
Claudio Ríos (Chile)
Fourth official:
Diego Haro (Peru)
Video assistant referee:
Julio Bascuñán (Chile)
Assistant video assistant referees:
Piero Maza (Chile)
Carlos Astroza (Chile)

Match rules[6]

  • 90 minutes.
  • Seven named substitutes, of which up to three may be used.

Second leg

Violence and change of venue
The Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti in Buenos Aires, Argentina, was originally to host the second leg, but the match was moved due to safety concerns following an attack on the Boca Juniors team bus outside the stadium when they were travelling to the original second leg.

Prior to the second leg of the final on 24 November, the Boca Juniors team bus was attacked en route to River Plate's stadium, the Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti. Multiple windows on the bus were broken after being hit by projectiles thrown from a crowd surrounding the bus, allowing pepper spray to enter the bus. Multiple players on the bus were injured as a result of the broken glass and pepper spray, with the match delayed by one hour to 18:00 local time.[22] Kickoff was later moved to 18:20 local time,[23] and again to 19:15,[24] before once more being delayed until 19:30.[25] Following the delays, the match was rescheduled for the following day, 25 November, with the same kickoff, 17:00 local time.[26] Former Boca Juniors and River Plate striker Gabriel Batistuta called the attacks "shameful".[26]

On 25 November, prior to the rescheduled second leg, Boca Juniors requested that the match be postponed in order for it to be played under equal conditions, which was not met following the attack.[27] CONMEBOL postponed the match once more as equal conditions were not guaranteed.[28] On 27 November, CONMEBOL confirmed the second leg would be played outside Argentina due to safety concerns, with the match taking place on 8 or 9 December.[29] Subsequently, on 29 November, CONMEBOL confirmed the match would take place at the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid, Spain, on 9 December at 20:30 local time.[5][30]

For security reasons, prior to the first leg, both clubs unanimously agreed to prohibit away fans from attending either match.[31] However, following the decision by CONMEBOL to move the second leg to Madrid, these plans were altered, with 5,000 tickets allocated to each club. Additionally, River Plate were reprimanded for the bus attack, fined $400,000, and ordered to play two games behind closed doors in the Estadio Monumental.[32] Real Madrid sold 25,000 tickets to fans of each team, as over 250,000 Argentines live and work in Spain, as among those Argentines include Real Madrid manager Santiago Solari, a former River Plate midfielder.[33] Real also agreed to sell tickets to their season ticket holders, which sold out quickly.[34] Security responsibilities for the second leg have been delegated to the Spanish football federation, rather than CONMEBOL, with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez claiming that plans are already underway to have the "necessary deployments to ensure the event is secure".[35]

However, additional concerns were reputedly raised by both clubs following the decision to move the game to Madrid. Leonardo Ponzio, the River Plate captain, was allegedly involved in a match-fixing scandal during his time at Real Zaragoza,[36] and as such his eligibility to play football in Spain was unclear at the time.[37] Meanwhile, there are also reports that Boca Juniors intend to appeal the decision to relocate the second leg.[38] In a subsequent press release, River Plate also announced an intent to protest the CONMEBOL decision to play in Madrid.[39] Boca Juniors appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to have the second leg postponed, but was rejected, although the court would continue to consider whether River should be suspended.[40]

Summary

The second leg finally went ahead in front of a crowd of approximately 72,000 in the Bernabéu. Most of the early opportunities fell to Boca, and finally Dario Benedetto, who had also scored in the first leg, scored in the 44th minute to give Boca a half-time lead.[41] In the second half, River Plate fought back and finally equalised after another first-leg scorer, Lucas Pratto, scored in the 68th minute.[41] The match then went to extra time, during which Boca were reduced to 10 men after Wilmar Barrios was sent off. River Plate took advantage, with Juan Quintero putting them into the lead in the 109th minute. An injury to Fernando Gago in the 116th minute, left Boca to just 9 men having used all substitutions. In the final minute Leonardo Jara hit the post for Boca, only for River Plate to break upfield and make the final score 3–1, with an empty net goal from Pity Martínez.[41][42] "It's been almost 60 days since this started and there is tremendous sadness," said the Boca manager, Guillermo Barros Schelotto.[41]

Details
River Plate 3–1 (a.e.t.) Boca Juniors
 Report
River Plate
Boca Juniors
GK1 Franco Armani
RB29 Gonzalo Montiel 74'
CB2 Jonatan Maidana 83'
CB22 Javier Pinola
LB20 Milton Casco 120+1'
CM24 Enzo Pérez
CM23 Leonardo Ponzio (c) 27' 58'
RW26 Ignacio Fernández 81' 111'
AM15 Exequiel Palacios 97'
LW10 Pity Martínez
CF27 Lucas Pratto
Substitutes:
GK14 Germán Lux
DF28 Lucas Martínez Quarta
MF5 Bruno Zuculini 111'
MF8 Juan Fernando Quintero 58'
MF18 Camilo Mayada 74'
FW7 Rodrigo Mora
FW9 Julián Álvarez 97'
Manager:
Matías Biscay[note 4]
GK1 Esteban Andrada
RB24 Julio Buffarini 111'
CB21 Carlos Izquierdoz
CB6 Lisandro Magallán
LB20 Lucas Olaza
CM15 Nahitan Nández
CM16 Wílmar Barrios 87'  92'
CM8 Pablo Pérez (c) 43' 89'
RW22 Sebastián Villa 96'
CF18 Darío Benedetto 62'
LW7 Cristian Pavón
Substitutes:
GK12 Agustín Rossi
DF2 Paolo Goltz
DF29 Leonardo Jara 96'
MF5 Fernando Gago 89'
FW17 Ramón Ábila 62'
FW19 Mauro Zárate
FW23 Carlos Tevez 120+1' 111'
Manager:
Guillermo Barros Schelotto

Assistant referees:[43]
Nicolás Taran (Uruguay)
Mauricio Espinosa (Uruguay)
Fourth official:
Víctor Carrillo (Peru)
Video assistant referee:
Leodán González (Uruguay)
Assistant video assistant referees:
Esteban Ostojich (Uruguay)
Richard Trinidad (Uruguay)

Match rules[6]

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See also

Notes
  1. The Boca Juniors v River Plate match, originally scheduled on 10 November 2018, 17:00 UTC−3, was postponed to the following day due to a waterlogged pitch.[16]
  2. The River Plate v Boca Juniors match, originally scheduled on 24 November 2018, 17:00 UTC−3, was postponed to 9 December 2018 due to an attack on the Boca Juniors team bus when several players were injured.[28]
  3. The River Plate v Boca Juniors match, originally scheduled to be hosted by River Plate at the Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti, Buenos Aires, took place in Spain at the Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid due to safety concerns.[5]
  4. River Plate manager Marcelo Gallardo was given a four-match ban (one-match stadium ban, three-match touchline ban) in CONMEBOL competitions following the semi-final second leg. Assistant manager and compatriot Matías Biscay filled in as manager.

References
  1. "Las finales de la CONMEBOL Libertadores se disputarán el 10 y 24 de noviembre". CONMEBOL.com. 1 November 2018.
  2. "Confirmados los horarios y fechas de los partidos finales de la CONMEBOL Libertadores 2018". CONMEBOL.com. 5 November 2018.
  3. "La CONMEBOL Libertadores se definirá en final única a partir de 2019 con mayores beneficios a los clubes y la competencia". CONMEBOL.com. 23 February 2018.
  4. "Histórica decisión: Final Única de la Libertadores 2019 en Santiago y Final Única de la Sudamericana 2019 en Lima". CONMEBOL.com. 14 August 2018.
  5. "Final de la CONMEBOL Libertadores 2018 se jugará el domingo 9 de diciembre en el Santiago Bernabéu de Madrid" [Final of the 2018 CONMEBOL Libertadores will be played on Sunday, 9 December at the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid]. CONMEBOL (in Spanish). Luque. 29 November 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  6. "Reglamento CONMEBOL Libertadores 2018" (PDF) (in Spanish). CONMEBOL.com.
  7. Edwards, Dan (9 November 2018). "Boca vs River is the Copa Libertadores final Argentina has craved – but will the country cope with the carnage?". The Independent. Independent Print Limited. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  8. Smith, Rory (9 December 2018). "In a Transplanted Final, Even the Copa Libertadores Is Sanitized". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  9. "River para la historia". AS Argentina (in Spanish). 10 December 2018. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  10. "River Plate snatch Libertadores glory over Boca in Madrid". Reuters. 10 December 2018. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
  11. Stokkermans, Karel (17 July 2018). "Copa Libertadores de América". RSSSF.com. Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
  12. "Boca Juniors set up Copa Libertadores final Superclásico with rivals River Plate". The Guardian. 1 November 2018. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
  13. McGuire, Eoghan (17 May 2015). "Boca Juniors thrown out of Copa Libertadores after derby chaos". CNN. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  14. "River vs. Boca: por el trono de América y la Gloria Eterna". CONMEBOL.com. 23 November 2018.
  15. "El Consejo aprueba con cuatro meses de antelación calendario de disputa de la Libertadores y Sudamericana 2018" (in Spanish). CONMEBOL.com. 27 September 2017.
  16. "Boca Juniors vs River Plate: titanic Copa Liberadores final postponed by 24 hours due to heavy rain". The Independent. Independent Print Limited. 10 November 2018. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  17. "Boca Juniors and River Plate draw 2–2 in Copa Libertadores final first leg". The Guardian. 11 November 2018. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
  18. "Rain postpones first leg of Copa Libertadores between Boca Juniors, River Plate". ESPN. 10 November 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  19. Unwin, Will (11 November 2018). "Boca Juniors and River Plate draw 2-2 in Copa Libertadores final first leg". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  20. "Boca y River igualan 2-2 y todo se define en la revancha". CONMEBOL.com. 11 November 2018.
  21. "Árbitros para la final ida de la CONMEBOL Libertadores". CONMEBOL.com. 2 November 2018.
  22. Caron, Emily (24 November 2018). "Boca Juniors Bus Attacked En Route to El Monumental for Copa Libertadores Final". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  23. "La frase que le explotó en la cara al arquero de San Lorenzo en Temuco: "En Argentina eso no pasa"" [The phrase that exploded on the San Lorenzo goalkeeper's face in Temuco: "In Argentina that doesn't happen"]. RedGol (in Spanish). 24 November 2018. Archived from the original on 24 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  24. "El presidente de Conmebol confirma que la Superfinal se jugará a las 19:15" [The president of CONMEBOL confirms that the Superfinal will be played at 19:15]. Marca (in Spanish). 24 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  25. Fripp, Nicolás (24 November 2018). "Se posterga la superfinal" [Superfinal postponed]. 970universal.com (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 24 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  26. "Boca Juniors v River Plate in Copa Libertadores final postponed after bus attack". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 24 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.
  27. "Comunicado de prensa" [Press release]. Boca Juniors (in Spanish). 25 November 2018. Archived from the original on 25 November 2018. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
  28. "Copa Libertadores: Boca Juniors against River Plate match postponed again". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 25 November 2018. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
  29. "All-Argentine Copa Libertadores Final to Be Played Outside Argentina". The New York Times. Associated Press. 27 November 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  30. "Final de la CONMEBOL Libertadores 2018 se jugará el domingo 9 de diciembre en el Santiago Bernabéu de Madrid". CONMEBOL.com. 29 November 2018.
  31. "Copa Libertadores: Away fans banned for River Plate-Boca Juniors final". ESPN. 5 November 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2018.
  32. Butler, Michael (29 November 2018). "Postponed Copa Libertadores final to be played at Bernabéu in Madrid". The Guardian.
  33. Martin, Richard (7 December 2018). "Spain braces for hooligans ahead of South American 'Superclasico'". Reuters News Service. Reuters. Reuters. Retrieved 9 December 2018.
  34. "Real Madrid club member tickets to the Copa Libertadores final have now sold out". Real Madrid. Real Madrid. Retrieved 9 December 2018.
  35. "Copa Libertadores: River Plate v Boca Juniors moved to Bernabeu in Madrid". BBC Sport. BBC. 29 November 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2018.
  36. "Ander Herrera, Atletico Madrid captain Gabi among players facing prison sentence for alleged match fixing". Indian Express via Associated Press. 14 February 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2018.
  37. "Leonardo Ponzio, la preocupación de los abogados de River Plate" (in Spanish). Marca. 30 November 2018.
  38. "Boca Juniors refuses to play the final return of the Copa Libertadores in Madrid" (in French). L'Équipe. 30 November 2018.
  39. "Comunicado de prensa del 1 de diciembre de 2018" (in Spanish). CA River Plate. 1 December 2018.
  40. "Copa Libertadores final: Boca Juniors' bid to postpone match rejected by Cas". BBC Sport. 8 December 2018.
  41. Lowe, Sid (9 December 2018). "River Plate claim Copa Libertadores against 10-man Boca". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  42. "¡River Plate campeón!". CONMEBOL.com. 9 December 2018.
  43. "Andrés Cunha dirigirá el juego River Plate vs. Boca Juniors". CONMEBOL.com. 14 November 2018.
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