Copa Libertadores: It's San Lorenzo vs. Paraguay's Club Nacional For The Marbles

At La Paz, Bolivia:

Despite dropping a 1-0 game-two road decision to Club Bolivar on Wednesday, San Lorenzo won their two-game Copa Libertadores semifinal series with the Bolivian club 5-1 on aggregate and advanced to the two-match final against Club Nacional of Paraguay, which opens next Wednesday at Asuncion.  The series will conclude on August 13 at Buenos Aires, with the winner advancing to December's FIFA Club World Cup, which will take place in Morocco. 

Copa Libertadores: Despite Game-Two Defeat, Club Nacional Reaches Final

At Montevideo, Uruguay:

Despite a 1-0 game two defeat on Tuesday to Defensor Sporting, Paraguay's Club Nacional still won their two-game Copa Libertadores semifinal series 2-1 on aggregate and advanced to the two-match final, the opening game of which the Paraguayan club will host next Wednesday, with the return match to be played on August 13.  The winner of the San Lorenzo-Club Bolivar series (which the Argentinian club leads 5-0 on aggregate) will take on Club Nacional.

Copa Libertadores: San Lorenzo All But On Their Way To Final

At Buenos Aires:

Emanuel Mas scored twice (28', 87') on Wednesday as San Lorenzo crushed visiting Club Bolivar 5-0 in the opening contest of their two-game Copa Libertadores semifinal series.

Copa LIbertadores: Club Nacional----Of Paraguay, That Is---Blanked Defensor Sporting To Take Semifinal Series Opener

At Asuncion, Paraguay:

Brian Montenegro (35') and Derlis Orue (69') delivered the scoring as Club Nacional blanked visiting Defensor Sporting 2-0 in the opening game of a two-match Copa Libertadores semifinal series on Tuesday.

Copa Libertadores: Club Bolivar, Defensor Sporting Advance To Semifinals

The quarterfinal round of the Copa Libertadores concluded on Thursday with two games.

At La Paz, Bolivia:

Juan Carlos Arce scored the only goal of the match in the 87th minute as Club Bolivar defeated visiting Lanus 1-0 in game two and won their two-match series with the Argentinian club 2-1 on aggregate.

At Montevideo, Uruguay:

Nicolas Olivera scored the only goal of the match in the 88th minute as Defensor Sporting defeated visiting Atletico Nacional 1-0 in game two and won their two-match series with the Colombian club 3-0 on aggregate.


Here are the match-ups for the semifinal round, with the game-one hosts listed first:

Each series will start on July 22-24 with the return contests on July 29-31.

Club Nacional (Paraguay) vs. Defensor Sporting

San Lorenzo vs. Club Bolivar

Copa Libertadores: San Lorenzo, Club Nacional of Paraguay Advance To Semifinals

The quarterfinal round in the Copa Libertadores resumed with two Wednesday contests.

At Buenos Aires:

A 0-0 game-two road draw with Arsenal de Sarandi was good enough for Club Nacional as the Paraguayan club won their two-match series 1-0 on aggregate.

At Belo Horizonte, Brazil:

Ignacio Piatti scored in the ninth minute as San Lorenzo gained a game-two 1-1 road draw with Cruzeiro and ousted the Brazilian club 2-1 on aggregate.

Copa Libertadores: Club Bolivar Gain Series-Opening Road Draw With Lanus; Defensor Sporting Grab Series-Opening 2-0 Win At Atletico Nacional

The quarterfinal round of the Copa Libertadores reached the midway point on Thursday with two games.

At Lanus, Argentina:

William Ferreira delivered a stoppage-time equalizer (90'+1) to lift Club Bolivar to a series-opening 1-1 road draw with Lanus.  Oscar Benitez scored in the eighth minute for the hosts.

At Medellin, Colombia:

Leonardo Pais (77') and Nicolas Olivera (83') each scored a second-half goal as Defensor Sporting blanked Atletico Nacional 2-0 on the road in the opening contest of their two-game series.

Copa Libertadores: Club Nacional (From Paraguay), San Lorenzo Grab Series Openers At Home

Two games were played on Wednesday as the quarterfinal round of the Copa Libertadores commenced.

At Asuncion, Paraguay:

Derlis Orue scored the only goal of the match in the 35th minute as Club Nacional defeated visiting Arsenal de Sarandi 1-0 in the opening game of their two-match series.

At Buenos Aires:

Santiago Gentiletti scored the only goal of the match in the 84th minute as San Lorenzo blanked visiting Cruzeiro 1-0 in the opening contest of their two-game series.

Copa Libertadores: Champs Dethroned

At Belo Horizonte, Brazil:

Jefferson Duque's goal in the 87th minute carried Atletico Nacional to a 1-1 game-two road draw with Atletico Mineiro on Thursday as Round-of-16 play in the Copa Libertadores came to a conclusion.  The visiting Colombian club ousted the defending champions 2-1 on aggregate.

Match-ups for the quarterfinal round, with the opening contests taking place next week and the return matches the following week.  The game-one hosts are listed first:

Club Nacional (Paraguay) vs. Arsenal de Sarandi (Argentina)

San Lorenzo (Argentina) vs. Cruzeiro (Brazil)

Lanus (Argentina) vs. Club Bolivar (Bolivia)

Atletico Nacional (Colombia) vs. Defensor Sporting (Uruguay)

Copa Libertadores

Three games were played on Wednesday in the Copa Libertadores' Round of 16.

At Porto Alegre, Brazil:

Dudu scored the only goal of regulation in the 83rd minute as Gremio blanked visiting San Lorenzo 1-0 in game two and squared their two-match series at 1-1 on aggregate, forcing a penalty-kick shootout (no overtime was used). Nestor Ortigoza, Mauro Matos, Nicolas Blandi, and Julio Buffarini all converted their spot kicks as the Argentinian club won the shootout 4-2 and advanced to the quarterfinal round.

At Asuncion, Paraguay:

Dede (79') and Dagoberto (90'+3) provided the scoring as Cruzeiro defeated Cerro Porteno 2-0 on the road in game two and won their series 3-1 on aggregate.

At Independencia, Chile:

Diego Braghieri scored the only goal of both the match and the series in the 66th minute as Arsenal de Sarandi blanked Union Espanola 1-0 on the road in game two and ousted the Chilean club 1-0 on aggregate.

Copa Libertadores

Round-of-16 play in the Copa Libertadores resumed on Tuesday with two games.

At Buenos Aires:

Silvio Torales (PK-78') and Derlis Orue (90'+3) each delivered a goal as Club Nacional from Paraguay gained a 2-2 game-two road draw with Velez Sarsfield and won their series 3-2 on aggregate.

At Montevideo, Uruguay:


After Giorgian De Arrascaeta (59') and Nicolas Olivera (64') each delivered a goal in the second half of regulation time, Defensor Sporting blanked visiting The Strongest 2-0 in game two, and with the series deadlocked at 2-2 on aggregate, forced the penalty kick shootout (no overtime was used).  Matias Alonso, Matias Malvino, Adrian Luna, and the aforementioned Nicolas Olivera converted their spot kicks and the Uruguayan club won the shootout 4-2 to advance to the quarterfinal round.

Copa Libertadores: Series-Opening Goose Eggs For Arsenal (NOT The One) And Union Espanola

At Buenos Aries:

In the lone Thursday Copa Libertadores Round-of-16 contest, home-standing Arsenal de Sarandi was held to a 0-0 game-one home stalemate by Chile's Union Espanola.

Copa Libertadores: Lanus Advance To Quarterfinals; Atletico Mineiro, San Lorenzo, Paraguay's Club Nacional Grab Series Openers

The Round of 16 in the Copa Libertadores continued on Wednesday with four games.

At Asuncion, Paraguay:

Julian Benitez scored the only goal of the match in the 86th minute as Club Nacional pulled out a late 1-0 game-one home win over Velez Sarsfield.

At Buenos Aires:

Angel Correa scored the only goal of the match in the 51st minute as San Lorenzo took the opening match of their two-game series with Gremio 1-0 at home.

At Torreon, Mexico:

Ismael Blanco (28') and Paolo Goltz (PK-50') produced the goals as Lanus defeated Santos Laguna 2-0 on the road in game two and ousted the Mexican club 4-1 on aggregate.

At Medellin, Colombia:

Sherman Cardenas scored the only goal of the match in second-half stoppage time (90'+1) as Atletico Nacional defeated visiting Atletico Mineiro 1-0 in the opening contest of their two-game series.

Copa Libertadores: Club Leon Ousted By Club Bolivar

At La Paz, Bolivia:

In the lone Tuesday Copa Libertadores knockout-stage contest, Ronald Eguino scored in the 35th minute to lift Club Bolivar to a 1-1 game-two home draw with Club Leon, and with the aggregate score at 3-3, a ticket to the quarterfinal round via the away goals rule.

Copa Libertadores: The Strongest Prove To Be Too Strong For Defensor Sporting In Their Series Opener

At La Paz, Bolivia:

In the lone Thursday Copa Libertadores Round-of-16 contest, Jair Reynoso (69') and Raul Castro Penaloza (79') delivered the goals as The Strongest blanked visiting Defensor Sporting 2-0 in match one of their two-game series.

Copa LIbertadores: Lanus Take Series Opener As Knockout Stage Begins; Leon Held To 2-2 Home Draw By Club Bolivar; Cerro Porteno Gain Series-Opening Road Draw, Too

Three games were played on Wednesday as the knockout stage of the Copa Libertadores commenced.

At Lanus, Argentina:

Facundo Monteseirin (65') and Matias Martinez (90'+4) provided the scoring as Lanus topped visiting Santos Laguna 2-1 in the opening contest of their two-game series.  Carlos Quintero scored in the 67th minute to keep the Mexican club in the series.

At Leon, Mexico:

Juanmi Callejon (44') and Juan Carlos Arce (70') each scored a goal as Club Bolivar gained a series-opening 2-2 road draw with Club Leon.  Luis Montes (20') and Mauro Boselli (85') delivered the scoring for the Mexican club.

At Belo Horizonte, Brazil:

Miguel Samudio's late equalizer (90'+3) enabled Cruzeiro to salvage a game-one 1-1 home draw with Cerro Porteno.  Angel Romero scored in the 31st minute for the Paraguayan club.

Copa Libertdores: Group-Stage Play Ends

Thursday marked the conclusion of group-stage play in the Copa Libertadores with six games.

Group Four:

At Asuncion, Paraguay:

Silvio Torales scored the winning goal in the 83rd minute as Club Nacional locked up a berth in the knockout stage with a 3-2 home win over Independiente Santa Fe.

At Belo Horizonte, Brazil:

Jo's goal in the ninth minute stood up as Atletico Mineiro finished atop Group Four after shutting out visiting Zamora FC 1-0.  The defeat, coupled with the home win by Paraguay's Club Nacional, eliminated the Venezuelan club from the tournament.

FINAL GROUP FOUR STANDINGS:

1. Atletico Mineiro (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 12)
2. Club Nacional (Paraguay) (GP: 6; GD: -2; PTS: 8)
3. Zamora FC (GP: 6; GD: 0; PTS: 7)
4. Independiente Santa Fe (GP: 6; GD: -1; PTS: 5)

Atletico Mineiro (defending champions) and Club Nacional of Paraguay advanced to the knockout stage.



Group Six:

At Porto Alegre, Brazil:

Hernan Barcos' successful 13th-minute penalty kick turned out to be all the scoring as Gremio assured themselves of top spot in Group Six with their 1-0 home win over Uruguay's Club Nacional.

At Rosario, Argentina:

Santiago Trellez (8'), Sherman Cardenas (14'), and Orlando Berrio (55') produced the goals as Atletico Nacional knocked off Newell's Old Boys 3-1 on the road and jumped the Argentinian club into the knockout stage.

FINAL GROUP SIX STANDINGS:

1. Gremio (GP: 6; GD: +7; PTS: 14)
2. Atletico Nacional (GP: 6; GD: -1; PTS: 10)
3. Newell's Old Boys (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 8)
4. Club Nacional (Uruguay) (GP: 6; GD: -9; PTS: 1)

Gremio advanced to the knockout stage.



Group Eight:

At Buenos Aires:

In a battle of the two Group Eight clubs that had already clinched knockout-stage berths, Arsenal de Sarandi, with goals from Emilio Zelaya (20'), Mariano Echeverria (54'), and Marc Crosas (OG-73') dominated visiting Santos Laguna 3-0.

At Montevideo, Uruguay:

Edwin Aguilar's equalizer in the 64th minute lifted Deportivo Anzoategui to a 1-1 road draw with Penarol in the tournament finale for both clubs.  Baltasar Silva scored for the hosts in the eighth minute.

FINAL GROUP EIGHT STANDINGS:

1. Santos Laguna (GP: 6; GD: +6; PTS: 13)
2. Arsenal de Sarandi (GP: 6; GD: +7; PTS: 12)
3. Penarol (GP: 6; GD: -5; PTS: 5)
4. Deportivo Anzoategui (GP: 6; GD: -8; PTS: 3)

Copa Libertadores

Six games were played on Wednesday, the next-to-last day of Copa Libertadores group-stage action.

Group Two:

At Buenos Aires:

Ignacio Piatti scored twice in the second half (53', 88') as San Lorenzo dominated visiting Botafogo 3-0 and clinched a berth in the knockout stage while eliminating the Brazilian club in the process.

At Independencia, Chile:

Daniel Angulo delivered a quadruple (11' ,48' , 57', 75') while Junior Surnoza's penalty kick in the 77th minute proved to be the game winner as Independiente del Valle outlasted home-standing----and already knockout-stage-bound----Union Espanola 5-4.  The win, though, was not good enough for the Ecuadorian club due to the San Lorenzo victory over Bogafoto and their tournament is over.

FINAL GROUP TWO STANDINGS:

1. Union Espanola (GP: 6; GD: +1; PTS: 9)
2. San Lorenzo (GP: 6; GD: +1; PTS: 8)
3. Independiente del Valle (GP: 6; GD: 0; PTS: 8)
4. Botafogo (GP: 6; GD: -2; PTS: 7)

Union Espanola and San Lorenzo (due to superior goal differential vis-a-viv Independiente del Valle) advanced to the knockout stage.



Group Five:

At Belo Horizonte, Brazil:

Ricardo Goulart (23'), Bruno Rodrigo (26'), and Julio Baptista (41') each scored a goal in the first half as Cruzeiro dominated visiting Real Garcilaso 3-0.  The Brazilian club will play in the knockout stage.

At Montevideo, Uruguay:

Matias Alonso's equalizer in the 60th minute enabled Defensor Sporting to salvage a 1-1 home draw with Universidad de Chile and lock up top spot in Group Five.  Ramon Ferdandez scored for the guests in the 38th minute.

FINAL GROUP FIVE STANDINGS:

1. Defensor Sporting (GP: 6; GD: +6; PTS: 11)
2. Cruzeiro (GP: 6; GD: +6; PTS: 10)
3. Universidad de Chile (GP: 6; GD: -3; PTS: 10)
4. Real Garcilaso (GP: 6; GD: -9; PTS: 3)

Defensor Sporting and Cruzeiro (due to superior goal differential vis-a-vis Universidad de Chile) advanced to the knockout stage.



Group Seven:

At Rio de Janeiro:

Carlos Alberto Pena scored the winning goal in the 83rd minute as Club Leon locked up a berth in the knockout stage by eliminating hosts Flamengo 3-2.

At La Paz, Bolivia:

Juanmi Callejon scored the winning goal in the 50th minute as Club Bolivar laid claim to the Group Seven title by holding off visiting Club Sport Emelec 2-1 and knocking the Ecuadorian club out of the tournament.

FINAL GROUP SEVEN STANDINGS:

1. Club Bolivar (GP: 6; GD: +2; PTS: 11)
2. Club Leon (GP: 6; GD: +3; PTS: 10)
3. Flamengo (GP: 6; GD: 0; PTS: 7)
4. Club Sport Emelec (GP: 6; GD: -5; PTS: 6)

Club Bolivar and Club Leon advanced to the knockout stage.

Copa LIbertadores: The Stronges, Cerro Porteno, Lunus Advance To Knockout Stage

Four games were played on Tuesday as the final week of Copa Libertadores group-stage action commenced.

Group One:

At Buenos Aires:

Roberto Nanni scored the only goal of the match in the 51st minute as Velez Sarsfield blanked visiting Universitario de Deportes 1-0.


At La Paz, Bolivia:

Nelvin Soliz scored the winning goal in the 54th minute as The Strongest knocked off Atletico Paranaense 2-1 and claimed a berth in the knockout stage.

FINAL GROUP ONE STANDINGS:

1. Velez Sarsfield (GP: 6; GD: +6; PTS: 15)
2. The Strongest (GP: 6; GD: +1; PTS: 10)
3. Atletico Paranaense (GP: 6; GD: 0; PTS: 9)
4. Universitario de Deportes (GP: 6; GD: -7; PTS: 1)

Velez Sarsfield and The Strongest advanced to the knockout stage.



Group Three:

At Asuncion, Paraguay:

Julio Dos Santos successfully converted a penalty kick in the 79th minute for the game's winning score as Cerro Porteno clinched top spot in Group Three (and a berth in the knockout stage) with a 3-2 home win over Deportivo Cali, eliminating the Colombian club from the tournament.

At Rancagua, Chile:

A 0-0 road stalemate against O'Higgins was good enough for Lanus as the Argentinian club advanced to the knockout stage.

FINAL GROUP THREE STANDINGS:

1. Cerro Porteno (GP: 6; GD: +1; PTS: 10)
2. Lanus (GP: 6; GD: +1; PTS: 8)
3. O'Higgins FC (GP: 6; GD: 0; PTS: 7)
4. Deportivo Cali (GP: 6; GD: -2; PTS: 7)

Cerro Porteno and Club Atletico Lanus advanced to the knockout stage.

Copa Libertadores: Road Draw Clinches Knockout-Stage Berth For Atletico Mineiro; Road Win Keeps Cruzeiro Alive

Two games were played on Thursday in Copa Libertadores group-stage action.

Group Four:

At Bogota, Colombia:

Jefferson Cuero's equalizer in the 63rd minute enabled Independiente Santa Fe to salvage a 1-1 home draw with Atletico Mineiro.  Guilherme Milhomem Gusmao scored in the seventh minute for the defending champions, who clinched a berth in the knockout stage.

GROUP FOUR STANDINGS:

1. x-Atletico Mineiro (GP: 5; GD: +2; PTS: 9)
2.    Zamora FC (GP: 5; GD: +1; PTS: 7)
3.    Independiente Santa Fe (GP: 5; GD: 0; PTS: 5)
4.    Club Nacional (Paraguay) (GP: 5; GD: -3; PTS: 5)

x-Clinched berth in knockout stage



Group Five:

At Santiago, Chile:

Bruno Rodrigo (16') and Miguel Samudio (39') provided the scoring as Cruzeiro kept their flickering hopes of advancing to the knockout stage alive with a 2-0 road blanking of Universidad de Chile, preventing the visitors from clinching a berth in the Round of 16.

GROUP FIVE STANDINGS:

1.    Defensor Sporting (GP: 5; GD: +6; PTS: 10)
2.    Universidad de Chile (GP: 5; GD: -3; PTS: 9)
3.    Cruzeio (GP: 5; GD: +3; PTS: 7)
4. z-Real Garcilaso (GP: 5; GD: -6; PTS: 3)

z-Eliminated from tournament