Palmeiras defeats River again and reaches the Libertadores semifinals
Palmeiras turned the game around at Allianz Parque, winning 3-1 with brilliant performances from Vitor Roque and Flaco López, and now awaits its opponent between São Paulo and LDU.
247 - Palmeiras confirmed their strength in the Copa Libertadores de América by beating River Plate again, this time 3-1 after coming from behind, on Wednesday night (24), at Allianz Parque, in São Paulo. With the result, Verdão secured a place in the semifinals of the continental competition. The information is from Agency Brazil.
The team led by coach Abel Ferreira had already won the first leg, last week (17), by 2-1 at the Monumental de Núñez Stadium, in Buenos Aires. Thus, qualification was consolidated with two wins over the Argentine rival. Now, Palmeiras awaits the definition of its opponent, which will come from the match between São Paulo and LDU, scheduled for this Thursday (25), at Morumbis. The Ecuadorian team won the first game by 2-0 in Quito.
Tense first few minutes
The atmosphere at Allianz Parque was one of confidence, but the fans suffered right from the start. In the seventh minute, River Plate capitalized on a defensive error by Palmeiras and opened the scoring: Quinteros crossed into the box from a free kick and Salas headed it in, putting the Argentinians ahead. With this scoreline, the match would go to penalties.
From then on, River tried to control the pace of the game, resorting to fouls and gamesmanship to hold back Palmeiras' momentum, who appeared nervous and had difficulty creating plays.
The turnaround in the second half
After the break, Abel Ferreira adjusted the team's strategy, prioritizing plays down the wings. The change took effect just five minutes in: Piquerez crossed into the box, Vitor Roque headed the ball, Armani made a partial save, and the striker himself pounced on the rebound to equalize the score.
The goal ignited the Allianz Parque and forced River to attack more. This posture opened up spaces for Palmeiras' counter-attacks. In the 41st minute, Facundo Torres launched a fast break and was only stopped by a foul inside the area by Acuña, who was subsequently sent off. Flaco López took responsibility, struck the ball with skill, and turned the game around.
There was still time for the Argentine striker to shine once more. In the 48th minute, Flaco López received the ball at the edge of the area, dribbled past his marker with a backheel, and shot with his left foot, lobbing Armani and sealing the 3-1 victory with a beautiful goal that drew applause even from the most incredulous.
The road to the fourth title.
With another semifinal appearance secured, Palmeiras reaffirms its status as a leading force in the Libertadores Cup in recent years. Abel Ferreira's team seeks to reach yet another continental final to continue its quest for a fifth title in the tournament, consolidating its recent dominance in South American football.
