Copa Argentina – River Won in Formosa And Has A Place in The Quarterfinals Marcelo Gallardo’s team won conclusively by 3-0 against Defensa y Justicia with goals by Ignacio Scocco (2) and Exequiel Palacios.

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During the recess of the South American Qualifiers for the World Cup, River did not take a break and traveled to Formosa to play for the round of 16 of the Copa Argentina, where it eliminated Defensa y Justicia with a powerful victory by 3-0.

When the match was just starting, Defensa y Justicia had the first clear goal situation after a play through the right with a kick by Fernando Márquez that passed very near Germán Lux’s right post. However, River quickly took charge of the match and had a penalty in its favor after a handball that occurred during a play with Nicolás de La Cruz.

From the 12-step distance, Ignacio Scocco did not miss it. He executed the penalty very strongly, and Gabriel Arias could not stop it. In the next play, Rafael Borré made a good pass for Nacho, who dodged the rival’s defense and kicked the ball with style into the goal, and thus converted the second goal of the match.

Then, Defensa y Justicia made River nervous with a powerful kick that Lux deflected without any problems. River had two more clear plays for the third goal. First, De la Cruz got blocked when he tried to kick the ball into the goal, then Scocco was not able to set up Carlos Auzqui after a play with Borré.

During the second half, River never lost control of the match and played it with intelligence and efficiency so that the victory was assured despite the rival team approaches to the area through the sides. The clearest goal opportunities for River happened with free kicks that Scocco could not define, but the 3-0 came with Exequiel Palacios and a low kick from the penalty area.

Now, Marcelo Gallardo’s team has to wait for the winner of the match between Belgrano from Córdoba and Atlanta. For the local tournament, River will receive Atlético Tucumán next Sunday at the Monumental Stadium.

SUMMARY

RIVER PLATE: Germán Lux; Gonzalo Montiel, Jonatan Maidana, Javier Pinola, Marcelo Saracchi; Leonardo Ponzio (C), Ariel Rojas, Nicolás De la Cruz, Carlos Auzqui; Rafael Borré and Ignacio Scocco. COACH: Marcelo Gallardo.
Substitutes: Augusto Batalla, Alexander Barboza, Iván Rossi, Denis Rodríguez, Exequiel Palacios, Tomás Andrade and Alan Marcel Picazzo.
Substitutions: Palacios for De La Cruz, Rossi for Rojas, Andrade for Borré.

DEFENSA Y JUSTICIA: Gabriel Arias (C); Ignacio Rivero, Luis Jerez Silva, Pablo Alvarado Rafael Delgado; Leonel Miranda, Andrés Cubas, Gonzalo Castellani; Fabián Bordagaray, Fernando Márquez and Ciro Rius. COACH: Manuel Fernández.
Substitutes: Ezequiel Unsain, Dylan Gissi, Franco Cristaldo, Hernán Fredes, Daniel González, Juan Kaprof and Nicolás Fernández.
Substitutions: Fernández por Márquez, Cristaldo por Rius, Kaprof por Castellani.

Goals: Scocco -2-, Palacios (RP).
Booked: Scocco (RP); Cubas, Castellani, Delgado, Alvarado, Jerez Silva (DJ).

Referee: Silvio Trucco.
Assistant Referees: Lucas Germanotta and Facundo Rodríguez.
Fourth Official: Guillermo González.