Independiente struggled to get past Olimpia in the Copa Sudamericana on Wednesday night but on Sunday in Avellaneda, Mauricio Pellegrino’s side had no such troubles in sweeping past River Plate. Marcelo Gallardo also enjoyed a difficult evening en route to the Sudamericana quarter-finals but his under-strength side in the Estadio Libertadores de América failed to ever really look comfortable and were deservedly beaten.
The home side had already threatened prior to defender Nicolás Taglifico heading El Rojo into a fourth minute lead but with Martín Benítez and Juan Manuel Trejo breaking forward at pace, River failed to control the midfield. With a little over half an hour gone, the lead was doubled when Milton Casco clumsily bundled over Benítez and provided Diego Rodríguez the opportunity to slot the ball past Marcelo Barovero.
The first half had been a disaster for River but it got worse three minutes before the break when Leonardo Pisculichi was sent off for a two-footed challenge on Jorge Ortíz. Gallardo and his players may have felt aggrieved but Néstor Pitana had little option with both of the decisions.
After the break, Pitana did miss what was a decent penalty shout for the visitors when Sebastián Druissi was thumped to the ground by Diego Rodríguez but it was a rare moment of pressure. Independiente continued to push forward and Diego Vera came inches away from adding a third when his volley smashed off the crossbar and with the match looking won, Mauricio Pellegrino was able to introduce captain Federico Mancuello for his first appearance in over four months.
Juan Martín Lucero poked a third with a couple of minutes remaining and Independiente inflicted River’s heaviest defeat since the 5-1 defeat to Lanús at the end of the 2013 Torneo Final. For both sides, the Copa Sudamericana remains the priority but Independiente have now taken a step towards securing one of the Libertadores playoff spots.
Earlier in Rosario, Newell’s made it three consecutive wins thanks to Maxi Rodríguez’s brace against Huracán. Despite having Lucas Boyé sent off, La Lepra were able to hold off the visitors, who are understandably focused on the Copa Sudamericana rather than the league.
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