Liga Postobon - Round 2
26 July 2010
It was a good weekend for the capital's three clubs as Millonarios, Santa Fe and La Equidad all claimed victories.
Millonarios, playing their first game of the season, beat Deportivo Cali 1-0 on Saturday evening courtesy of a 44th-minute Omar Vasquez goal.
Millonarios has been dogged by off-the-field financial problems for several years, but last month it was announced that the current board of directors had finally agreed to sell the club. The news was met with excitement and hope, particularly following the arrival of respected Venezuelan coach Richard Paez (photo, right).
And indeed Millonarios looked like a new team on Saturday night. Rather than the slow, aimless play of the previous seasons they looked much more organised. The midfield was compact with the solid central pairing of Omar Rodriguez and Elkin Blanco constantly being offered options. The long aimless and often inaccurate passes of ealier this year were replaced with some impressive one touch football and intricate passing. But more than anything Millonarios exuded confidence on Saturday evening. There was an almost tangible threat every time Millonarios surged forward and there was even some showboating that brought cries of "Ole! Ole!" from the some 15 thousand supporters on hand. If Richard Paez can keep Millonarios playing at this level they will be serious contenders for the title come December.
In a replay of the final of the Liga Postobon I, La Equidad took on Atletico Junior. Remarkably the only goal of the game was one of the quickest in Colombian football history coming after just 7 seconds from Argentine Ariel Carreno. On Sunday evening Independiente Santa Fe rounded off a perfect weekend for the capital with a 2-1 victory over America de Cali.
The pick of next weekend's games is the Saturday evening encounter between Deportivo Cali and Atletico Nacional who finally get their season under way after two postponed matches due to stadium improvements. It will be the first competitive game for Nacional since the sale of their star player Giovanny Moreno to Racing of Argentina.
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