Superclasico, River Plate beats Boca Juniors, brawl on the pitch and seven expelled

A scandalous ending, marked by a gigantic collective brawl that required the entry of the forces of order. This is how the 260th Argentine Superclasico ended, won in extremis by River Plate before the collective fury that put the press and public opinion to shame. In the end, referee Dario Herrera drew nine yellow and seven red cards, blowing the whistle after an 18′ stoppage and with the police on the sidelines. An evening that went smoothly until the 93rd minute, when the former Livorno player Borja converted a penalty awarded after the intervention of the Var room, instead ended in total chaos due to a heated quarrel between Palavecino and the former Sampdoria player Romero. From then on, a violent uproar was barely calmed down under the eyes of a Monumental packed with 85,000 people.

goal and big fight

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Referee Herrera kept the pulse of the challenge firmly on until injury time, thanks to a rigid direction that cooled the excitement on the pitch already in the first half thanks to seven yellow cards. But Herrera could do nothing after Borja’s decisive goal from eleven meters, the result of a penalty awarded for a foul by Sandez on Palavecino in the area. The general uproar seems to have been triggered by the latter’s provocative exultation after the penalty converted by the former Livorno player, who celebrated by showing off a religious-themed shirt while an out-of-control pitch invasion was taking place behind him.

moments of fear

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From the spat between Palavecino and Romero to the general fist fight it was a moment. Within seconds, players from both benches, including staff and coaches, poured onto the pitch to engage in a heated clash of kicks, shoves and punches. Also dispensing slaps and directs were some players who, as injured, should not even have been on the sideline, such as Marcos Rojo and Paulo Diaz (two of the most fervent). With still one minute to play, referee Herrera was forced to suspend the game for 18′, the time necessary for officials and the forces of order to restore a semblance of calm while the Var room examined the images to identify the culprits and violent. For almost 20′ the Monumental field was transformed into a ring with no holds barred, from which someone (like Merentiel) came out with visible marks on his face. In the end, the match director summarily dispensed cards, kicking out six players (three on each side) and Boca coach Jorge Almiron. But further disqualifications are likely to occur in the next few days, after a closer examination of the images