Where We Stand

Almost every one of Argentina’s top division clubs has played 10 matches (they are still working on completing these things in a logical manner…outlook doubtful), which marks the halfway point of this 19 game tournament. What does this mean? What do the next 9 matches hold? What role will Argentinos play in all this? Read on to find out…Here are the current standings (I can’t get a hang of placing it well…):

Team Points Wins Draws Losses

1. Independiente 22 7 1 2

2. Boca Juniors 20 6 2 2

3. Argentinos Juniors     17 5 2 3

4. Tigre 17 5 2 3

5. Lanús 17 5 2 3

6. Racing 16 5 1 4

7. River Plate 15 4 3 3

8. Vélez Sarsfeld 15 5 0 5

9. Banfield 15 5 0 5

10. San Lorenzo 14 4 2 4

11. Arsenal de Sarandí 14 4 2 4

12. Colón de Santa Fe* 13 4 1 4

13. Huracán 13 3 4 3

14. San Martín de SJ 13 4 1 5

15. Estudiantes de La Plata 11 3 2 5

16. Gimnaasia de La Plata* 11 3 2 5

17. Newell’s Old Boys 11 3 2 5

18. Gimnasia de Jujuy 10 2 4 4

19. Rosario Central 7 1 4 5

20. Olimpo de Bahía Blanca 6 1 3 6

The gist: Argentinos has a good chance to finish in the top five.  So do 12 other clubs.  It’s still a big time fight at the top, in the middle, and down below.  El Bicho could wind up champion, it could end up in 15th; there’s no good way to know.  I will break down their schedule in detail tomorrow, but suffice it to say that they have lost to poor clubs and beaten good ones, so anything is possible.

Overall, it’s a very interesting tournament, as can easily be seen.  There is quite a dilemma here as to whether this levle of parity is good for fútbol or if it’s a sign of badness.  Anyone who has followed the sport in the past thirty years knows that the finest young Argentine talent travels to Europe for ultimate glory and large paychecks.  This has led to a dearth of talent remaining for local clubs (Ortigoza is a regular starter, when there are times when it seems that he should not be let out of the house, for one example…).  There are still fine players plying their trade here–Rodrigo Palacio, Pablo Ledesma, Germán Denis, Nico Navarro, Fernando Belluschi, et al.–but the majority are have left for greener pastures.

Many pundits and fans believe that the quality of play has declined accordingly.  It’s hard to argue, since the closest analogy I can think of is the difference between NCAA basketball 10 years ago and today, after the exodus of the quality players to the NBA at an earlier age. Can Argentina blame Kobe too??

Anyway, I’m excited, so whatever.  Argentinos can possibly be involved in the title hunt until the end.  I won’t dream though.

Other big Argentine news is the the aforementioned Germán Denis has scored an amazing 13 goals in 10 matches.  He’s no poacher, either.  Many have been brilliant.  Also, Tigre, who was making big moves in the lower divisions under the leadership of Ricardo Caruso Lombardi a few years ago is now swimming with the big boys at the top of the table.  They just downed River Plate 4-1 and sit in fourth place (due to goal differential).  That would be a great story, if not for the fact that they are a threat to Argentinos…

Things are kicking into gear and the second half of the tournament is officially underway.  Every match means a whole lot more now, and throwing points away, which happened against Gimasia de Jujuy two weeks ago and Olimpo de Bahía Blanca two weeks before that (use your head Abán!!!!) cannot happen any more.  More on the situation as it develops.

Category: Team News

Tags: Team News

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