Enner Valencia late goal gives Boca Juniors Argentine Annual Table title, Digi Mart USA News (Buenos Aires, Argentina): Valencia’s goal came in the fifth of six added minutes at La Bombonera and will be remembered by Boca Juniors supporters for a long time. The Ecuadorian forward appeared at the 50-minute mark to take advantage of an unusual error by Defensa y Justicia goalkeeper Matías Borgogno, scoring the 1-0 winner into an empty net and giving Boca the Annual Table title.
After the match, Valencia shared his thoughts on scoring the decisive goal. “We knew it was going to be a difficult match because they play well.
At times we handled it well, but we knew that at any moment we would score, and thank God it came.” He also thanked club president Juan Román Riquelme, who chose him to join the squad in the transfer market: “I am truly grateful to him for trusting me and bringing me to the biggest club in Latin America.”
Valencia said he was pleased to have contributed. “That moment is about trying to come on and help teammates who had run a lot.
I got one chance and luckily it went in. I rank this goal among the first I’ve scored, like the ones for Racing.
Every goal I score takes me up another step. We are happy with this and hope to keep going.” He spoke to ESPN after Boca won the Liga Profesional title.
With this victory, Boca became the team with the most points of the year and won a domestic title for the first time in more than three years. Its previous title was the 2022 Argentine Supercup, played in March 2023 against Patronato.
Boca also remains in contention on several fronts: it will play in the Torneo Clausura playoffs, face Banfield in the Copa Argentina semifinals, and meet Atlético Mineiro in the Copa Sudamericana final.
Boca struggled to find its footing at home as the match wore on. A lack of finishing made visiting goalkeeper Matías Borgogno the standout, while Huracán’s goals against Argentinos Juniors at La Paternal added pressure on the Ribera side.
Julián Fernández’s goal gave Rosario Central a lead over Estudiantes de Río Cuarto near the end of the first half in Arroyito. In the second half, Boca again ran into Borgogno’s wall, and Sebastián Villa’s substitution reduced its explosive threat in the final meters.
The host side never gave up, however, and scored the goal it needed in the last moment of the contest. A cross from the left side led to a poor clearance by Borgogno, his only error of the match, and the ball fell loose in the area.
Valencia was there to send it into the back of the net despite defenders’ attempts to block it. The goal sparked collective jubilation at La Boca, while the celebrations in Rosario faded, after Central had beaten Estudiantes de Río Cuarto 2-0 and fans and players were awaiting the end of the Buenos Aires match.
Argentinos Juniors, which never really contended, lost 2-0 to Huracán, which overtook Sarmiento to reach the round of 16. Argentinos Juniors finished third, in the playoff zone for the 2027 Copa Libertadores, while Central finished second, in the direct qualifying zone for the Libertadores group stage.
Earlier, a Miguel Merentiel goal in the first half was disallowed for a correct offside call, and Leandro Paredes was substituted in the second half after requesting a change due to physical discomfort.
Boca Juniors next faces Banfield on November 14 to reach the Copa Argentina final. One week later, on Saturday the 21st, it will meet Atlético Mineiro in pursuit of the Sudamericana trophy in Colombia.
In the Torneo Clausura round of 16, it will face Independiente Rivadavia at La Bombonera, with date and time to be confirmed.
