Of the 12 Argentine teams that participated in the cups, only three are still in the race: because the balance still generates hope

When the activity of the continental tournaments organized by the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol) will resume at the beginning of August, three of the 12 Argentine clubs who started their journey in these competitions will continue competing. All three participate in the Copa Libertadores: Vélez, Estudiantes and Talleres. The South American Cup, on the other hand, has depopulated national teams. The numbers send out signals, although not all of them are as loud as it was supposed to be installed right now.

In a universe where the vast majority of media attention is focused on what’s going on around Boca and River, their eliminations at the hands of Corinthians and Vélez, in extremely tight streaks, caused a sensation. Some adventurers have been encouraged to talk about it “paper”as if the two giants of vulgar football had been beaten by the team of a rest center of Luis Guillón.

One fact served to fuel this turbot: this is only the second time in the last decade that neither Boca nor River have reached the Libertadores quarter-finals and the first in which there is no so-called team big Five In this case. But other numbers call for moderation. For example, Argentina has only once had more representatives in the top eight of the tournament in the last decade: Boca, River, Independiente and Atlético Tucumán in 2018.

The six Argentine teams that have signed up for this edition of the Libertadores have passed the group stage, three of them are still running and at least one will be in the semifinals (the winner of the crossing between Vélez and Talleres). Among the Brazilians, five of its nine representatives continue to compete. The 32 teams of the other eight federations that make up Conmebol have already said goodbye. Never in the history of the tournament has the draw for the quarter-finals consisted of only two flags.

In the Copa Sudamericana, on the other hand, the board is multicolored, as there are representatives of five nations in the quarter-finals. But none of them are Argentine. This too is an unprecedented event in the 20-year history of the event. In 2020 there were four (Defense and Justice – then champion-, Lanús – second place-, Vélez and Independiente), while in 2021 only one (Rosario Central).

This year, Racing, Independiente, Banfield and Defensa y Justicia were unable to pass the group stage (only the first in each zone reached the round of 16), while Lanús and Unión capitulated in the round of 16 (before Independiente del Valle and Nacional de Montevideo). The march of the Albicelestes teams in a cup that usually offers more chances has been very weak. As an example, it is worth mentioning that among the top eight are the Venezuelan Deportivo Táchira and the Peruvian Melgar along with four Brazilian representatives.

If the two contests are combined, Argentina contributes three of the 16 teams still coveting the trophies, while Brazil collaborates with nine. In 2021, at this point, only two Argentines (River in the Libertadores and Central in the South American) and eight Brazilians were still competing; in 2020 it was four past seven.

The results of these hours, beyond the Estudiantes defeat against Fortaleza (last player of the national tournament), has re-launched the debate on the real possibilities of Argentine teams to compete on an equal footing with their Brazilian peers. Any conjecture in this regard cannot ignore the fact that the comparison is underway with clubs in one of the 12 largest economies on the planet according to data from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

It’s obvious: football is a super professional sport in which the size of the wallet is a determining factor. The leaders of the clubs in this corner of the world can testify to this, that the Cain’s are passing through the still open market, not to reinforce the squad, but to avoid copious bloodshed. The most ostentatious dared to dream of footballers of the stature of Chilean Arturo Vidal and Uruguayan Luis Suárez, even if reality gave them a shock and woke them up. The more modest get away with what they can.

In Brazil, the opportunities are different from the money paid by television ($ 275 million per season), from the contribution of local businesses and also from the proceeds of foreign investments. Red Bull Bragantino is managed by the Austrian energy drink company, Botafogo was acquired by the American tycoon John Textor, also a shareholder of Olympique de Lyon and English Crystal Palace, and the City Football Group (owner of Manchester City, between the others) was negotiating a few months ago, albeit without success, the purchase of the Atlético Mineiro.

Those accounts are becoming an opportunity for some Argentine footballers and a sports condemnation for their clubs. In May, Uruguayan Miguel Merentiel, Defense and Justice scorer in the Professional League Cup, was signed by Palmeiras. In April, Kevin Lomónaco, with only a handful of First Division games between Platense and Lanús, left Red Bull Bragantino. At the beginning of the year, Fabricio Bustos (Inter de Porto Alegre) and Silvio Romero (Fortaleza) had done it. A few months earlier, Ignacio Fernández and Matías Zaracho (both at Atlético Mineiro).

In these days, 19 Argentine footballers, along with two coaches (Antonio Mohamed in Atlético Mineiro and Juan Pablo Vojvoda in Fortaleza), play in the Brasileirao teams. On the other hand, no Brazilian spends his boots on the grounds of the Professional Football League clubs. Money appears to be the main reason for this imbalance. And certainly also from the difficulty of competing in continental tournaments with super-powerful opponents such as Palmeiras or Flamengo.