Public statements, political threads and controversy: this is how the crosses of the League Cup quarterfinals are defined

The ball isn’t the only spin in Argentine soccer. As well as the political thread. It happens in the corridors of Viamonte, the historic headquarters of the AFA, or Puerto Madero, where the Professional League operates. Or by Zoom, a tool that has been exploited in the pandemic and facilitates meetings in this modern era that no longer require face -to -face meeting. To define an election, a championship, a date or time, everyone has a discussion. And because leaders often erase the regulations they write with their hands with their elbows, there are always twists and turns. This definition of the Professional League Cup quarterfinals is no exception.

Defense and Justice shouted into the sky on Sunday night, when the victory against Patronato was still fresh. Sebastián Beccacece said: “Playing on Tuesday is going to be crazy, nonsense, abuse and we will lose seriousness ”. The technician complained about the programming, which forced his team to face Boca, second in Zone 2, 48 hours after the duel in Entre Rios and with a day less rest than his strong rival, who played on Saturday and won against the Tigers in Victoria. And from that moment on, a lobby via WhatsApp began that lasted from that same night until noon yesterday, when the League officially announced that there were no changes to the previously scheduled: Tonight, Tuesday, the Falcon will visit Bombonera from 9:30 pm.

Racing and Aldosivi leaders already knew on Sunday that their game would be held on Tuesday at 7:15 pm Without further ado, people from Mar del Plata booked tickets to fly to Buenos Aires when at 6 pm and when dinner arrived they arrived at Jorge Newbery Airport. Estudiantes-Argentinos (19.15) and River-Tigre (21.30) will meet on Wednesday. It remains to be resolved Boca-Defense and Justice. And there’s a juicy behind the scenes that even includes some calls to the highest levels of government.

“From the Minister down, they called everyone”, a Security source entrusted to Clarín, an organization that has been decisive. The City of Buenos Aires does not want River and Boca to play on the same day. Because one of the ideas of Claudio Tapia, boss of the AFA, is that all games will be held on Wednesday. In this way, the formal request did not take place, but there were sounds. Near Chiqui they tested the ground. And the answer they found was negative.

The Minister of Security and Justice of Buenos Aires, Marcelo D’Alessandro, clarified that the position was to put the citizens first and was not willing to have nearly 2,000 troops to guard the parties of the two major ones. “There is no magic here, there is planned workwe will not endanger the safety of the neighbors, “Guillermo Madero, Executive Director of the Football Safety Committee, told Clarín. And he stressed:” We cannot change all the planning within 24 hours because of the request of a club, reduce putting neighbors at risk. We have a responsibility and that is to do things right ”.

As this newspaper found out, CABA Security officials consider themselves to have the best police coverage to deal with operations at sports events. However, they do not want to give in to the pressure.

This decision caused anger among the leaders. “If they can’t organize two police operations, why are they in charge?”, complaint of one of the referents of the clubs involved in the definition. And he even revealed that they are reviewing the filing of a complaint against the City. “You can’t organize a match against the Copa Argentina in the territory of Buenos Aires, it’s outrageous”, Roared the same manager.

The truth is that on Saturday, in Hurricane, the winners will play Estudiantes-Argentinos and River-Tigre.. And there will be an audience of the same bias. An estimated 40 thousand spectators, depending on the stars of the semifinals. The League proposed the stadium of Tomás Adolfo Ducó and accepted the Security. It has great capacity and easy access. It is close to the highway. Since May 29, 2016, a match has not been played between two fans. The latter is the San Lorenzo-Lanús in the Monumental.

Another semi will be resolved in Lanús between Racing or Aldosivi and Boca or Defense and Justice. It was also on Saturday and there were supporters of both clubs. Why wasn’t it played on Sunday? Since Tuesday the ball has rolled again to Libertadores and Sudamericana. Under this stage, it is impossible to schedule a game later.

Defense and Justice have been shown to be the most affected by this situation. However, its president left a sentence that deserves scrutiny. “The League sent a plan to all the clubs we had a chance to qualify for. As a nice cabulero, I told them I would see it on Sunday after 6 p.m.. I can’t complain about something that hasn’t touched me. Yes, in Newell’s case, I know they’re thinking about that possibility because they’re third, “Diego Lemme admitted to TyC Sports. gave the feeling that he had left everything to chance. No one expected a very strong fall from Rosario, who lost a ticket to the quarterfinals against San Lorenzo and Gimnasia.

However, the leaders themselves raised their hands – along with them at Florencio Varela’s club – at the beginning of the year, when they voted to start the championship a week later. Then, a wave of Covid-19 exploded and many football players became infected. With the international cups ahead and the World Cup tightening the schedule, there aren’t too many options left.

In fact, the final has a venue, but no day or time. It will be played in Córdoba, but has not specified whether it will be Saturday or Sunday. It depends on the clubs disputing the title and whether they have to play for the Cup all week. So compressed all that the next championship will start on June 3. Yes, a dozen days later