The 63rd edition of the Libertadores Cup of Americawhich is played this 2022, could not have started with more emotions than those already experienced last Tuesday at the Banco Pichincha stadium in Guayaquil, in the match played by the Ecuadorian Barcelona and Uruguayan Montevideo City Torque.
That meeting, which was the one back in the first phase of the tournamentgave the winner a direct ticket to the next round, since the first leg game in Montevideo he had stayed equaled to 1 and only the victory served either of those two teams to advance. This, after Conmebol approved two months ago a change in the rules of the competitionfor which a classification will no longer be decided, in the event of a tie in points and goal difference, by the goals scored as a visitor in the direct elimination phases, as was the case until 2021.
And exactly the second leg between Barcelona and Montevideo City Torque was the first to apply this new change in the regulations, and therefore to the Ecuadorian team, which scored a goal as a visitor in the Uruguayan capitalit was no longer just a tie to qualify as it was until last year, but it had to win by any score so as not to depend on another type of definition.
Finally, that match ended goalless, with which the qualified team had to be defined in a penalty shootout, as it will be from now on when in a direct elimination two teams end up equal on points and goal difference. This time Barcelona and Montevideo City Torque each added two points and zero average goal.
And after the end of the two periods of 45 minutes, one of the definitions by penalties more uncertainbut at the same time more excitingfor the fans of both teams, perhaps only comparable to the one that occurred on Wednesday, August 16, 1995, when the Argentine River Plate and the Colombian Atlético Nacional met at the Monumental in Buenos Aires for the semifinals of the Libertadores and that after executing 14 penalties between both teams nobody failed.
In both games, the one in 1995 to which reference is made and the one played last Tuesday in Guayaquil, 16 penalties were taken, and although cup history records another four matches with between 18 and 26 pitches to define a qualifier, what stands out most in the case of the game Barcelona vs. Montevideo City Torque is the effectiveness shown by the penalty takers of both teamsfirst converting the initial ten shots, and then in a kind of “sudden death” scoring one more penalty each until they were tied 7-7, just as it happened a little over 26 years ago in Buenos Aires.
In the 63 editions of the Copa Libertadores 113 definitions have been made by penaltieseven 12 of them have had to be executed to know which team would be the champion of the tournament, and of those 113 only in two has the effectiveness record been reached (93.75%)one of those two is the one registered last Tuesday in Guayaquil and the other 26 years ago in Buenos Aires.
Barcelona has contested so far eight penalty shootouts in the history of this tournament, of which has won seven (two in 1990 before the Bolivian Oriente Petrolero and the Argentine River Plate; one in 1992 against the Paraguayan Cerro Porteño; another in 1996 against the Bolivian San José; one more in 1998 against Cerro Porteño; another in the 2017 against the Brazilian Palmeiras; and the last one, last Tuesday against the Uruguayan Montevideo City Torque); Y only lost one (at 2004 against the Colombian Once Caldas).
The only times the yellow team has not missed any penalty in one definition (100% effective) have been in 1990 against River Plate and in the 2022 against Montevideo City Torque.
This is how it went for other Ecuadorian teams
Other Ecuadorian teams have also had to define a classification in the Libertadores through the penalty shootout.
League of Quito: played five, won two (against San Lorenzo and the Brazilian Fluminense in 2008, the year they became champions of the Libertadores) and lost three (with River Plate in 1999; against the Brazilian Santos in 2004; and against the Brazilian Gremio in 2013).
Emelec: played four, won one (against Paraguayan Cerro Porteño in 1995) and lost 3 (against Venezuelan Minervén in 1994, against Argentine San Lorenzo in 2017, and with Brazilian Flamengo in 2019).
Valley Independent: he played two, won one (against the UNAM of Mexico in 2016) and lost the other (against the Uruguayan National in 2020).
The National: the only one he played was lost against the Brazilian Cruzeiro in 1997.
Valdez: the only one he played was lost against San Lorenzo in 1992.
Record for most shots in a single game
26 penalties: June 3, 1992, semifinals: América de Cali (COL) 10 – Newell’s Old Boys (ARG) 11. After the first round of ten pitches they were even 5-5.
26 penalties: May 29, 2013, quarterfinals: Newell’s Old Boys (ARG) 10 – Boca Juniors (ARG) 9. After the first round of ten pitches they were tied 3-3.
Record for fewest pitches in a single game
7 penalties: April 30, 2002, round of 16: Peñarol (URU) 3 – Montevideo Wanderers (URU) 0.
7 penalties: May 13, 2004, round of 16: Cruzeiro (BRA) 0 – Deportivo Cali (COL) 3.
In both cases it was not necessary to execute the initial ten penalties between the two teams because one team had already qualified with just the seven shots.
Greater effectiveness between two teams
93.75%: August 16, 1995, semifinals: River Plate (ARG) 7 – Atlético Nacional (COL) 8, only one of 16 penalties was missed.
93.75%: February 15, 2022, first phase: Barcelona (ECU) 8 – Montevideo City Torque (URU) 7, of 16 penalties only one was missed.
Less effectiveness between two teams
25%: July 1, 2004, final: Once Caldas (COL) 2 – Boca Juniors (ARG) 0, 6 of 8 penalties were missed.
25%: September 26, 1990, semifinals: Olimpia (PAR) 2 – Atlético Nacional (COL) 1, 9 of 12 penalties were missed.
Greater effectiveness of a team in a definition
100%: America of Cali (COL), 1987 and 2003
100%: Argentine Juniors (ARG), 1985
100%: Athletico Paranaense (BRA), 2005 and 2017
100%: National Athletic (COL), 1995
100%: Atletico Mineiro (BRA), 2000 and 2013
100%: Barcelona (ECU), 1990 and 2022
100%: Boca Juniors (ARG), 1977, 2000 and 2004
100%: Bolivar (BOL), 2000
100%: Botafogo (BRA), 2017
100%: Cerro Porteno (PAR), 2011
100%: Cruzeiro (BRA), 1997 (twice)
100%: Emelec (ECU), 1995
100%: Flamengo (BRA), 2019
100%: Garcilaso (PER), 2013
100%: Guild (BRA), 2007 and 2018
100%: Independent of the Valley (ECU), 2016
100%: Independent Medellin (COL), 2020
100%: Lanus (ARG), 2017
100%: Freedom (PAR), 2006 and 2019
100%: Quito League (ECU), 2008
100%: Minervén (VEN), 1994
100%: Olympia (PAR), 1989, 2002 (twice) and 2021
100%: Eleven Caldas (COL), 2004
100%: Palestinian (CHI), 2019
100%: Palmeiras (BRA), 1999, 2000 and 2001
100%: Penarol (URU), 1998
100%: Racing (ARG), 1997 and 2020
100%: River Plate (ARG), 1995, 1999 and 2019
100%: San Lorenzo (ARG), 2014
100%: Santos (BRA), 2004 and 2012
100%: São Caetano (BRA), 2004
100%: São Paulo (BRA), 1994
100%: Catholic University (CHI), 2010
100%: University of Chile (CHI), 2012
100%: Velez Sarsfield (ARG), 1994
100%: Vasco Da Gama (BRA), 1990 and 2012
Less effectiveness of a team in a definition
0%: Boca Juniors (ARG), 2004
0%: Cruzeiro (BRA), 2004
0%: Montevideo Wanderers (URU), 2002
Of the 113 definitions by penalties disputed until this Wednesday, 5 have been for phase one; 3 for phase two; 4 for phase three; 1 for the playoffs and 2 for tiebreakers in intermediate rounds; 54 in the round of 16 phase; 18 in the quarterfinals; 14 in the semifinals; and 12 in the final.
The year with more definitions by penalties in the Libertadores is the 2004, with nine: 1 for the playoffs, 5 for the round of 16; 1 for quarters; 1 for semifinals; and 1 for the final.
Of the 63 editions, only in 37 it has been necessary to use the penalty shootout to determine a qualified team or a champion. Until 1987, obtaining the title was defined with a third game or tiebreaker, if there was equality of points in that final stage, and the penalty shootout was only applied when after that third game the tie in points and goals persisted. (D)
Source: Eluniverso
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