The 'Seventh' of Boca Juniors or the first of Fluminense, a Carioca club rich in history but never yet victorious at a continental level? This is the question that characterizes the final of the Libertadores Cup scheduled for tomorrow at the Maracanã, which will be half full of Argentine fans (150 have invaded Rio, but many of them will have to make do with the giant screens) and therefore the home field advantage will have a relative weight.
So far the main protagonist has been violence, due to clashes, especially in Copacabana, between supporters of the two teams and with the police. Supporting the 'barras bravas' of Boca, who were already not very fond of themselves, were also groups of ultras from Flamengo and Vasco da Gama, great rivals of their fellow citizens from Fluminense and who do not even want to hear about a possible triumph of the 'tricolor' white, red and green loved by many members of the Italian community in Rio. But Boca, which was founded in 1905 thanks to some boys who came to Argentina from the Bel Paese, also has an Italian soul, or rather Genoese and partly Lucanian.
For everyone, the yellow and blues are the team of Diego Armando Maradona's heart, who played and won here before going to Barcelona and then to Naples. The team of coach Jorge Almiron and the seasoned bomber Edinson hopes precisely in the Maradona effect that has characterized football in the last eleven months. Cavani, another former idol of Napoli.
What is this so far happy destiny in the name of the former 'Pibe de Oro'? Argentina started by winning the world title, the third in its history, 36 years after the last one, that of 1986 and the goal of the 'Mano de Dios'. Napoli continued by winning the third scudetto, while in Spain Barcelona and Seville, two other 'Maradonian' clubs albeit for the short span of two and one season, won respectively the Liga and the Europa League.
If Boca were to win, something unique, indeed magical, would happen, and some in Argentina would even say that Maradona works miracles. If Boca were to triumph on penalties, they would also set a record: no one has ever won a Libertadores without winning a match in the knockout phase. So far, in fact, the 'Bomboner' club has eliminated Nacional Montevideo in the round of 16, Racing Avellaneda in the quarterfinals and Palmeiras in the semifinals, always after two draws in the first and second legs, and then prevailing on penalties, therefore thanks to the veteran goalkeeper, former Sampdoria and Venezia player, Sergio 'Chiqui' Romero. He is the true hero of Boca's continental journey, a solid but not very spectacular team.
Some old acquaintances also play for Fluminense, and they are Marcelo who won everything at Real Madrid and now hopes to do the same in his homeland with the club he has supported "since I was born", and Felipe Melo who has a long history behind him, also in Italy, and who has already lifted the Libertadores two years with Palmeiras, winner of the all-Brazilian final against Santos.
At the helm of the 'Flu' is Fernando Diniz, who is also the part-time coach of the Seleçao while waiting for Carlo Ancelotti to arrive. But in these hours Diniz is mainly thinking about recovering John Kennedy, that's his real name, a talent who could be decisive in a final but who is not in perfect physical condition. In the end he should make it, and he will go to form a pair with Cano, an Argentine striker who is a Boca fan but who this time will try to cause great displeasure to his favorite team.
Article published on November 3, 2023 - 17:56
