Neither side will exactly be able to relax over the summer break and yet relegation threatened Newell’s Old Boys head into the holidays with a slight skip in the step after coming from behind to defeat Independiente.

Maxi Rodríguez struck three minutes from time to ease the Lepra’s relegation fears and inflict another frustrating loss on an Independiente side looking for fresh guidance.

After failing to score in two games in which Independiente took only a point, interim manager Fernando Berón may have thought things were going to be different after eight minutes when Cecilio Domínguez latched on to a long ball over the top to lob Alan Aguerre.

Yet with a defence as ill-organised as Independiente’s, Newell’s were always going to have chances. The home side continued to too in what was an open end to the Superliga year but La Lepra drew level when a clipped pass in behind the sleeping Juan Sánchez Miño allowed Angelo Gabrielli to slide the ball past Martín Campaña.

A tug of Alan Franco’s shirt in stoppage time allowed the league’s leading scorer Silvio Romero to restore Independiente’s lead but when Berón would have wanted calm heads after the break, the game became even more chaotic.

Independiente had chances to extend their lead but just as they have on more than one occasion this season switched off a corner and allowed Fabricio Fontanini to head in unmarked on the hour mark.

The game was anyone’s yet after being denied a clear penalty earlier for a shirt pull, Maxi Rodríguez slotted in a late winner.

Newell’s will have faith that Frank Kudelka has enough to keep them in the top flight in 2020 while for Independiente there is a great deal of soul searching to be done this summer.