BUENOS AIRES, April 2 - Boca Juniors had two players sent off for the
second weekend in a row but still managed to beat Banfield 2-1 in the Argentina
championship on Sunday.
Lanus hammered River Plate 4-1 while Newell's Old
Boys held arch-rivals Rosario Central 0-0. River, Boca and Newell's are now
level at the top of the Clausura championship with 25 points from 13 games.
Boca went ahead in the 15th minute when Banfield defender Marcos Galarza
deflected Martin Palermo's shot into his own net.
The game seemed to turn Banfield's way in the 50th minute when Daniel Diaz
handled Jose Sand's goal-bound shot on the line and was sent off. Jose Datolo
fired home the penalty to equalise.
In the 72nd minute, Boca midfielder Federico Insua was given a second yellow
card for diving, leaving his team with nine men.
EXTRAORDINARY
But Banfield failed to capitalise and Boca snatched a last-minute winner when
Hugo Ibarra's long-range shot caught goalkeeper Cristian Lucchetti out of
position.
"The team was extraordinary, it's not any team that can do this," said Boca
coach Alfio Basile.
"The refereeing today was a disaster and I'm not just blaming the referee,
but also the linesmen."
River, unbeaten in their last 10 matches, found themselves 3-0 down at
halftime away to Lanus.
Sebastian Leto fired Lanus in front with their first real attack in the 20th
minute, Danilo Gerlo headed into his own net and then Agustin Pelletieri made it
3-0 a minute before the break.
Ernesto Farias tapped in from close range to the reduce the deficit six
minutes after the re-start but Cristian Fabbiani restored Lanus's three-goal
advantage in the 75th minute.
Meanwhile, Newell's and Rosario both appeared happy with a point in a dreary
0-0 draw.
Racing Club, coached by former Argentina captain Diego Simeone, remain bottom
of the table after a 2-0 loss away to Argentinos Juniors, their ninth defeat in
13 outings.
Racing's frustration boiled over when Sebastian Romero was sent off in the
85th minute and Diego Menghi followed a minute later.