One word fits perfectly when it comes to describing Argentine football: competitiveness. The concept is used by coaches, players, leaders, journalists and fans. And it is enough to review the position tables in the two zones of the League Cup to support the statement. One piece of information is conclusive: with 5 days left until the first round ends, there are 17 teams who dream of qualifying for the quarterfinals.
A clarification is also necessary: Just because local football is competitive does not mean it is good. Rather the complete opposite. Because the level that the League Cup is giving away is poor. There’s a reason we talk more about refereeing decisions than about the game itself. So far in 2024, no team has been able to stand out above another, as had happened with River in the first half of 2023. It is not a sensation but a reality that anyone can beat anyone: So far in the Cup, there have been 46 local wins, 38 draws and 41 visitor wins. Thus, the locals get the 3 points in 36.8 percent of the games. In the Premier League, meanwhile, there were 122 local victories in the 268 games played, which is equivalent to 45.5%.
An encouraging statistic is that In the Cup, 258 goals were scored in 125 games; That is, there are 2.06 celebrations per mourning. The average number of goals in England is close to 3.5 and that of the Bundesliga is above 3.
Another piece of information provided by the League works as a symptom: there are no offensive midfielders or forwards in the list of the 10 players who made the most passes (Santiago Sosa, Agustín García Basso, Paulo Díaz, Alexis Soto, Agustín Cardozo, Gastón Lodico, Cristian Lema, Santiago Ascacibar, Santiago Ramos Mingo and Matías Catalán).
Godoy Cruz (19) is the team with the best numbers: they won 6, tied 1 and lost 1; He scored 11 goals and only scored 2. Tomba is the leader in Zone B even though they have a pending duel with Saint Lawrence. In any case, the Mendoza cast cannot relax because the fifth of their group, Union (15), add 4 points less. And below the colossi appear Boca (13) y Racing (14), who this Sunday collide in the Bombonera in a key duel. Does the loser have one foot out of the championship?
Students (18), the guard, on the last date fell at home against Platense (10), who had only won one match. Furthermore, the cast led by Eduardo Domínguez this afternoon will present substitutes on their visit to Sarmiento de Junín because on Wednesday they play the Super Cup final against River at the Mario Kempes in Córdoba.
In third and fourth place appear Newell’s y Lanus, with 16 units, two irregular teams. For example, on Thursday night Granate fell 1-0 at home against Córdoba Central.
Defense and Justice (13) must string together a streak of consecutive victories to get into the fight. The same as San Lorenzo (8), which could be within 5 of the classification positions if it wins the pending game against Godoy Cruz (will be played on Wednesday the 20th).
In Zone A, River, Argentines, Institute e Independent They add up to 17 points. El Rojo receives Núñez’s team in a key duel. One point below is the surprising Central Tents (16), stalked by Workshops (15) y Velez (fifteen). Six units behind the leaders appears Central Rosary (11), which needs a good streak to join the fight above. The good thing for the team led by Miguel Russo is that on this date they play against Instituto.
“For me, the most logical thing is a long tournament, because it gives you more time. The coaches could work more calmly. Now everything is nervous. The 28 teams? We have to think about that, otherwise it becomes difficult for Boca and all the teams “Argentines play well. It is difficult to maintain consistency”said Juan roman riquelme in the week. And he joined the debate Ruben Darío Insua: “As demonstrated, there are no easy rivals in Argentina. This is competitive football; there is a reason we are world champions. Just by looking at the Argentine Cup we realize this”.
The degree of complexity is high. There are no easy rivals. Physically, a Federal A team holds up on par with a team from the Professional League.
A commonplace applies to the current League Cup: anyone beats anyone. So, then, in the remaining dates anything can happen.