Pumas COPA SUDAMERICANA [R] IV

[Chiquitibum]

no doubt we can do it.

it was bad reffing, that close goal, didnt look like it went in but cameras can be decieving.

that last play did look like a penalty for boca.

[Disco Dale]

Of course it will not be easy in La Bombonera, but it is also not impossible.

As far as I can see from CONMEBOL website, the away rule for the final will be as it has been in previous matches, NOT as previously stated i.e. extra time for the final, this means 0-0 it goes to Boca, 2-2 or higher draw to Pumas, and 1-1 straight to penalties.

A very clear case of "a game of two halves", and whilst I felt 2-1 Pumas would have reflected the game better, but when talking about our missed chances, don't forget they missed a sitter early doors... a real sitter, my granny would have scored it ..in her pinny.

As to the "goal" that wasn't it seemed to me (from a reasonable position) to be clearly in... that was my first reaction, and from the replays they put up on the big screen during the game (naughty!) it still looked in to me.

Oh, and were Boca complaining about where there fans were? It wasn't that "close" to our "crazies" - perhaps they would have been more comfortable further away - Cuernavaca maybe?

[puromorelia]

I was a lil too hot last night to post as many Pumas followers im sure felt as well... now that things seem a lil more clear I have to say that It was to me very poor the way Pumas started out this game, exactly the way they started out the game against Velez only difference was they were able to score off a lonely corner kick on a goal by "Picolin" and this time it was Boca that took the lead and Pumas had no shots on goal in the entire first half!! :eek:

I think it was two things, lack of HUEVOS !!! and from the start a bad lineup by España, you cant play these type of games with a post like "denigris" who had very little touch with the ball that entire first half and the biggest mistake was not having any type of attack on the right wing where either Botero, Iñiguez or Pareja Lopez should have started!!!! In final games like this you cant give urself the luxury to WASTE an entire half the way Pumas did, specially after they had previously done it against Velez just a few days before, perhaps España and his trainers thaught that way but you cant take games based on past results, everygame is different and needs to be taken in its own unique way.

I also disagreed with España benching of Ailton, that was absurd, i mean with Botero getting free on the right wing and then the adition of Ailton on the left Pumas would have generated alot more attack and even many more chances on goal then the ones they had that second half, I also will keep saying this Iñiguez is GARBAGE! this guy belongs in Primera "A" and not where he is now, He never did shiiit with Morelia, he hasnt done anything with Pumas and he WILL NEVER do shiiit, hes one of those players with no confidence and no balls !!! It was frustrating seeing that controversial play, that one by Marioni that hit the post, the one by Botero that Abondanzieri saved with his FACE !!! lolx but to me the most frustrating one was that one by Iñiguez !!!! that one is unexcusable !!!!! you can not be a profesional soccer player and miss an oportunity like that in a game like this !!!!! I honestly would not start him ever again if Im miguel España......

Overall I think we should not feel that bad though, the result is not the one that would have hoped for but its not a bad result either considering how many goal oportunities we generated in comparison to them, NOW this is what Pumas needs to do to have a chance :

1> First off have a strong, Competitive lineup from the START at la bombonera the next game !! and that means leave POSTE denigris on the bench for the start of the game, start out with Botero and Ailton a must !!!! and then i think we will be ok !!!

2> Do not wait till the 2nd half to wanna start playing much like it happened against Velez and in this past game with boca, we need to start out CON HUEVOS from the time the whistle starts the game to the time it ends !!!

3 > Finally lets be honest, this is NOT an impossible task!!!! U. catolica de Chile went into la bombonera and played them "al tu por tu" and had them beat if it wasnt for a late goal by palermo that tied up the game in the end, but if Catolica was able to do it Pumas can very well damn do it as well if NOT better !!!! Cruz Azul has done it in the past alsoevn though they lost it in PK in the end.

I believe now the pressure shifts to Boca to play under their fans and well to the entire Argentine country im sure they already have them as champs so lets see how they can handle it, Pumas on the other hand has nothing to lose, they have OVER ACHIEVED and should play lose, they have everything to win and nothing to lose so lets get prepared, and most of all the coaching staff specially España will have to be very smart and careful with their moves and lineup if they want to shock everyone and bring the cup to MEXICO !!!!

Con todo pumas vamos a darles en la madre a esos chillones !!!!! SUERTE ....

Oh and one final coment, Ive heard and seen alot of negative and positive coments regarding Hugo sanchez and España etc. I will say this lets not get carried away !!!! we can not give all the credit to España on this as well as we cant say that this is all Hugo's neither. To me Hugo Sanchez built this team !! he injected in many of these players that WILL and that FIGHT that they still have within them and he accomplished alot of great things that you just cant passup or forget about !! he took this team to highs that many have not been able to do in fact I strongly believe if this was the same Pumas team during Hugos' prime as a coach, im talking about a year or so ago thers no doubt in my mind they would have beat this same boca team they faced yesterday !!!!

But like ALL good coaches out there, they are not Eternal and for Hugo it was clear that "la etapa" hugo was over and there was nothing else left to offer but He's a great coach and motivator aside all that smack he likes to talk and u gotta give him his credit !!!
On the other hand España should be given as much credit for having a team that was playing so poorly and with no motivation what so ever playing in LA GRAN FINAL against a big club such as Boca, Pumas has surpassed everyones' expectations and is still very alive and capable of wining it all !
España also does deserve alot of credit for that, he has changed the personality of the team and has given guys that Hugo had forgot about or had problems with a chance to again play and prove that they are still very capable of carying the weight that is associated with such a respectable club such as Universidad !!!! but lets just leave it at that and not chose sides because this is clearly the results of the 2 of them and one should not be given more credit then the other one ! ;)

A GANAR LA COPA PUMAS !!! VAMOS !!!!!!!

[PUMA Auriazul]

Im not letting my hopes down, we could still win.

[BlackComyn]

The tactics and team selection were spot on from España as per usual. Second half pumas were right to play a longer ball game and a more pressing game.

Pumas are better when they play three centre backs with wing backs pushing up. Having said this, palacios is a better player sitting in front of the back two. Shame he made the mistake for the goal. Hope it doesn't affect his new found confidence.

Pumas have been a "second half team" for years now. Why this is I don't know. Makes for exciting watching I suppose. Most teams are inconsistent over a season. Pumas are inconsistent over 90 minutes.

Hope that in the return leg we are not intimidated and really go for it. More of the long ball please !

[sangreazul]

There complaint is that they were going to be stuck out with the public. If that is true then they have a beef since that might not be the safest thing for them.

http://www.ole.clarin.com/jsp/v4/pagina.jsp?pagId=1103294

PASEN, PONGANSE COMODOS
Anoche, en México, a Mariano Closs y a Fernando Niembro les negaron una cabina para transmitir por Fox Sports. El jefe de prensa de Pumas se hizo el oso, y terminaron al borde del campo de juego; casi como en un banco de "suplentes". Ni hablar de comodidades o seguridad. Sólo faltó que en el segundo tiempo los reemplazaran por periodistas mexicanos...

[El_Maestro]

U. catolica de Chile went into la bombonera and played them "al tu por tu" and had them beat if it wasnt for a late goal by palermo that tied up the game in the end, but if Catolica was able to do it Pumas can very well damn do it as well if NOT better !!!! Cruz Azul has done it in the past alsoevn though they lost it in PK in the end.

I'm sure Johann Cruyff has been telling himself all these years: "We could've been world cup champions, if it wasn't for those Germans that kept scoring on us".

I believe now the pressure shifts to Boca to play under their fans and well to the entire Argentine country im sure they already have them as champs so lets see how they can handle it.

I really don't think the pressure affects Boca that much, in fact they thrive on it, specially considering that they got a tie on the road. Boca lives for this kind of games, that's why they've won so much over the years. If you ask me, the pressure is on the rookies.

[Disco Dale]

Pumas have been a "second half team" for years now. Why this is I don't know. Makes for exciting watching I suppose

It seems like that to me, to... we always like to shoot the same way.. Thiis season the only time I remember starting the "wrong way" around this season, was Cruz Azul, and we lost that 5-0.

I would also say we score more at one end than the other.. I did start to count this season, but got bored when we weren't scoring in either end

[fireman451]

Holy cow, just finished watching the rebroadcast of the match on FSC. Man, UNAM had clear chances. The score line should have been 3-1 Pumas maybe even 4-1.

Best of luck to UNAM in Argentina.

GOYA, GOYA!
Cachun, Cachun RA, RA!
Cachun, Cachun RA, RA!
Universidad!!!!

[FMF_LFP]

Holy cow, just finished watching the rebroadcast of the match on FSC. Man, UNAM had clear chances. The score line should have been 3-1 Pumas maybe even 4-1.

Best of luck to UNAM in Argentina.

GOYA, GOYA!
Cachun, Cachun RA, RA!
Cachun, Cachun RA, RA!
Universidad!!!!


Yeah man that was very Unfortunate, to be honest after Iniguez missed that clear score chance opportunity I knew and have feelins that might have costed Pumas the Cup.

The stadium spectacle was an awesome sight to soo , especially when the whole corwd and team were rasing their fist and chanting the Clubs Anthem song.

[HarleyDavidson]

Like I said before the game the conmebol official said what was on the web site was wrong and that away goals rule was in effect.


hhmmm... coming from an official that excuse is so unprofessional that it sounds really stupid and silly...

Why won't they admit that the rules were changed at the last minute to help out boca-juniors. Everyone knows that the conmebol will never let an invited mexican team spoil their tournament... they want everyone to believe that the sudacas teams are better than mexican teams.

[fireman451]

Well, UNAM should be rested for the return leg. Boca has at least 2 matches maybe three before the face off with Pumas.

I' pulling for you guys, I generally follow Pumas every season and would like to see the club end this year on a really high note before next season.

Buena suerte CU.

[riverplate]

Well, UNAM should be rested for the return leg. Boca has at least 2 matches maybe three before the face off with Pumas.


Boca has two games upcoming. Sunday against Independiente and next Wednesday against Olimpo.

[El_Maestro]

hhmmm... coming from an official that excuse is so unprofessional that it sounds really stupid and silly...

Why won't they admit that the rules were changed at the last minute to help out boca-juniors.

Tell me how the away goal rule helps out Boca, as far as I know the rule applies to both teams. If Pumas pulls a 2-2 draw in Buenos Aires they win the cup.

I find really disconcerning this Mexican attitude of playing the victim. What the hell you want, to recieve championships on a silver platter? If you want to win a tournament in our confederation you'll have to sweat it.

Like someone else mentioned before, there's the case of Cienciano del Cuzco, who won the Sudamericana 2 years ago, beating River Plate no less in the final. Cienciano is not only small potatoes in Southamerica but in their own country, Peru, as well. But somehow they pulled it off.

So, if you guys want to have it easy, stay in Concacaf, where you rule with an iron fist (although some gringos would disagree :)).

[Disco Dale]

Tell me how the away goal rule helps out Boca, as far as I know the rule applies to both teams.

I must agree with this.. it would only help Boca if they were convinced that Boca had a much better chance scoring at CU, than Pumas had at La Bombonera. Clearly it will be difficult to score there, but given the famous altitude & "sweltering heat", you would have thought that Boca were less confident than normal of scoring away from home. The rule change did happen one hour BEFORE the match, not one hour AFTER.

I can see why Mexican teams feel hard done by with CONMEBOL, and that leads to people seeing something sinister in every thing they do.

However, you have to admit that all this changing the dates at the dictation of Boca, the late change of the ref team, and the VERY late change of a long-standing rule does make CONMEBOL look pretty stupid and incompetent, at least. Anyone imagine UEFA changing a competition rule 60 minutes before kick-off of the final?!

[El_Maestro]

I must agree with this.. it would only help Boca if they were convinced that Boca had a much better chance scoring at CU, than Pumas had at La Bombonera. Clearly it will be difficult to score there, but given the famous altitude & "sweltering heat", you would have thought that Boca were less confident than normal of scoring away from home. The rule change did happen one hour BEFORE the match, not one hour AFTER.

I can see why Mexican teams feel hard done by with CONMEBOL, and that leads to people seeing something sinister in every thing they do.

However, you have to admit that all this changing the dates at the dictation of Boca, the late change of the ref team, and the VERY late change of a long-standing rule does make CONMEBOL look pretty stupid and incompetent, at least. Anyone imagine UEFA changing a competition rule 60 minutes before kick-off of the final?!

Welcome to Sudamerica.

If you guys had played Libertadores in the sixties and seventies you wouldn't believe the things the big teams got away with. From more than obviously suspicious ref decisions, to police manhandling rival teams, to teams like Estudiantes going to the field with pins in their hands.

Those years were brutal. Nowadays it's like peewee soccer in comparison.

[Dos Equis]

Im not letting my hopes down, we could still win.
Don't, the game at CU was complete bullsh1t. That game was ours for the taking. La Bombonera is juts a bunch of hype. Its not as bad as they say it is.

[puromorelia]

I really don't think the pressure affects Boca that much, in fact they thrive on it, specially considering that they got a tie on the road. Boca lives for this kind of games, that's why they've won so much over the years. If you ask me, the pressure is on the rookies.

Well to be honest with you the BOCAS of the past LIVED for these type of games and you could say they would have the advantage and the experience but this is a very different Boca team than those great boca teams from the past, I truly believe if they are unable to win the Argentine title then their crowd and fans would not forgive Boca if they are to NOT win this Sudamericana also having in mind that they will not be playing the Libertadores next year THIS IS the biggest and most important game for Boca in this year to come, excluding their local league and maybe the 2006 sudamericana so there will definately feel pressure to win this one in my opinion !!!

Also Argentines would not tolerate another Mexican team knocking off their beloved BOCA much like it happened against Chivas in the past Libertadores, as for Pumas this is and should be a game where u play lose and you enjoy because in almost everyones' eyes they are already DONE !!! so what do they have to lose ???

BTW question to any argentine out there>> why is it that Boca or the people in charge did not allow the Argentine National anthem to be played at the start of the game ??? I actually thaught it was disrespectful of Pumas to not play the argentine anthem when they faced Velez but then I could hear coming out of the stadium sound during this past BOCA/PUMAS game that it was a request by the Argentines for their national anthem to not be played..

so that made it clear to me as to why they didnt play it during the Velez match after they had played the Mexican National Anthem and then the Universidad fight song but im still unsure of why many if not all argentine clubs decide to do this, and not have their anthem be heard!!! does anyone know ???

[Sir Slickniss]

Because by doing this the FMF will consider them as possible candidates to nationalize more argentinians....lol

[El_Maestro]

Well to be honest with you the BOCAS of the past LIVED for these type of games and you could say they would have the advantage and the experience but this is a very different Boca team than those great boca teams from the past


Bocas of the PAST? Are you aware that Boca is the CURRENT Sudamericana Cup champion? If you really consider the team from a year ago a team from the past, well be my guest.


why is it that Boca or the people in charge did not allow the Argentine National anthem to be played at the start of the game ??? I actually thaught it was disrespectful of Pumas to not play the argentine anthem when they faced Velez but then I could hear coming out of the stadium sound during this past BOCA/PUMAS game that it was a request by the Argentines for their national anthem to not be played.


I don't know how the request not to play the anthem of a country that's not yours is disrespectful to anyone. And I know why they did it, they didn't want their anthem to be booed, and believe me, it was going to happen, they just didn't want to put their national song, and themselves, through that.