Viera and Borja give Junior his first victory in Libertadores

In the debut of Luis Amaranto Perea as coach of the team after the departure of Julio Comesaña, Junior got his first points in this edition of the Copa Libertadores. The Barranquilla club won 1-2 over Barcelona in Guayaquil at the close of the third date of the group stage.

The visitor began by pressing on the rival field and very early went up on the scoreboard. Miguel Borja ran away and before entering the area he was shot down by Darío Aimar. The judge showed him a yellow card despite the claims of Junior’s men, but from that still ball came the first: Free kick taken by Sebastián Viera below the barrier to beat Javier Burrai.

Junior was able to extend the lead with another free kick from Freddy Hinestroza that passed nearby. Then Barcelona took possession of the ball, but it was difficult for them to penetrate the opponent’s defensive block and arrive clearly on the area, until the 28th minute, when Leandro Martínez put a long ball to Cristian Colmán, who with the control and change of pace eliminated Dany Rosero and defined with subtlety by picking her in front of Viera.

Injury of a referent

The bad news followed instantly for Junior, as Teófilo Gutiérrez’s injury was added to the tying goal, who left his place to Daniel Moreno. Junior recovered the ball near the break and despite advancing in the opponent’s field, he lacked clarity to arrive with danger.

José Angulo entered the premises for the second half and had the first starting the complement, but his shot hit the outside of the net. Barcelona approached again with a header from Colmán that Viera cleared and a definition from Angulo that passed close after a short clearance from the Uruguayan goalkeeper that left the goal empty.

However, Junior went back to the front at 70 ‘with a center from Hinestroza from the left for Borja’s header in the race, that minutes later he had the third with a powerful right hand, but the stick denied him. Near the end, Barcelona were able to equalize the actions with a free kick, but Viera’s hands appeared to clear.

Junior will receive the leader

Victory that leaves those led by Amaranto Perea in the third box of Group A with 3 points and on the next day they will receive Independiente del Valle, who comes from surprising with a 5-0 win over Flamengo in Ecuador. Junior already faced this rival in Quito and was also thrashed 3-0.