By Louis Smith at Estadio Monumental.
A stadium usually donned in red and white was a sea of black and white as Rio de Janeiro’s Botafogo, took on Belo Horizonte-based side Atletico Mineiro in the Argentine capital of Buenos Aires.
The black and white scene had been a picture throughout the week with several fans flooding the city for the showpiece event. In every corner of Buenos Aires, it was hard to see anything but black and white.
The atmosphere an hour before kick-off was electric, deafening, and one to savour. Atlético Mineiro were chasing their first Copa since 2013, whilst, Botafogo were gunning for a first-ever title, which added to the excitement and anticipation.
The one-legged finals have been something fans in South America have been divided on, but what it does add, is extra tension.
Atlético Mineiro fans were massively outnumbered by Botafogo fans, which was evident as the stadium announcer read out the team lineups. When Fogo players were being shouted out, you could hardly hear yourself think; as Atletico fans tried to match them chanting “Galo”, it was quickly drowned out.
After a lengthy ceremony and the Brazilian national anthem, the time for talking was done, but upon the start of play, the football wouldn’t last long before a lengthy break in play.
With just 40 seconds on the clock, Gregore went to control a bouncing ball as Fausto Vera’s head came rushing in and was caught by the studs of the Botafogo midfielder.
It left Argentine referee Facundo Tello no choice but to show a red card, making it the out-of-form Atlético’s Libertadores to lose.
It was the first time the Fogo fans had been silent since arriving on Argentine soil throughout the week, and Galo voices were heard for a brief moment.
Following the red card, the game lulled with nothing much happening. A typically powerful Hulk strike forced John Victor into a save before Deyverson sent the ball way above the crossbar.
Despite going down to ten men, Fogo fans were still in fine voice and a yellow card to Galo defender Rodrigo Battaglia, raised the volume even higher.
Moments later, some good work from Botafogo found them in the box with the ball coming to Marlon Freitas on the edge of the area. He almost overthought the shot which was a scruffy effort to catch out Galo who failed to clear their lines. Luiz Henrique pounced quickly to fire the Rio de Janeiro side 1-0 in front, sending their fans wild.
It would get even better for Botafogo moments later as Henrique pressed the Galo backline, getting caught by a challenge from Everson inside the area. Originally nothing was given, but following a VAR review, Fogo were given the chance to extend their lead from the spot.
The former Manchester United man, Alex Telles, stepped up, sending Everson the wrong way and sending Fogo fans into dreamland at the break.
Atlético Mineiro needed to get off to a perfect start in the second half and they did just that after a delightful corner from Hulk was equally met by a header from Chilean forward Eduardo Vargas, putting the ball into John’s net — in truth, the goalkeeper didn’t stand a chance.
Galo were slow in possession in the first half, not really troubling the ten men of Botafogo, something coach Gabriel Milito must have picked up on at halftime as they moved the ball much quicker, getting their main asset Hulk on the ball in the second period.
It almost paid off when he received the ball on the right; putting in a lovely cross for Deyverson who fluffed his header.
The Former Zenit man was involved again, this time cutting in from the right-hand side and hitting the ball with his left foot, forcing John into a strong save.
Scorer of the first goal for Galo, Vargas, had two glorious chances to pull Atlético level but fluffed his lines on both occasions. Botafogo’s ten men and resilient crowd could not be beaten for a second time.
Junior Santos, capitalized on Fogo’s only chance of the second half to give them a 3-1 lead in the dying embers of the match, crowing the Rio de Janeiro side champions of South America for the first time in their history.
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