Not so little anymore

So in the end, the dream of a first-ever Argentine league title wasn’t to be for Tigre. The newly promoted side from the river delta to the north of Buenos Aires had fought bravely through to the end, coming from behind to beat (and dump out of the title race) the giants of Boca Juniors in their penultimate match to keep that dream alive. On the final day, though, results didn’t go their way, so Tigre – whose previous best-ever finish in the top flight was sixth back in 1954 – have to make do with the runners’ up spot in the 2007 Apertura.

Such is the nature of Argentine domestic football of late, though, that this didn’t prove too much to moan about for the romantics who like seeing unheralded sides go all the way. Tigre may not have managed it, but the side who pipped them to the title are another who, prior to this campaign, had never tasted domestic glory. Lanús, managed by Ramón Cabrero, established in the first division but hardly a big club, claimed a draw in the trickiest of venues, away to Boca in La Bombonera. The result: the championship was beyond Tigre, who in any case eventually lost 1-0 to Argentinos. For the away fans high in the stands of one of South America’s legendary stadia, there was overwhelming joy, and in the wider country came universal recognition that they more than any team in this championship have deserved it.

It’s been the nature of the Argentine league in its last three campaigns (’seasons’ is inaccurate – each season is split into two halves, Apertura – ‘opening’ and Clausura – ‘closing’). 18 months ago, Boca Juniors had won two straight titles and were hot favourites to do something which, amazingly, they’d never managed before: win a third in a row. They were even hotter favourites with two matches remaining of last year’s Apertura: one point would hand them the title. They managed to lose both matches – remember this, because we’ll come back to it later – whilst Estudiantes de La Plata got enough points to force a title-deciding playoff. Appropriately, Estudiantes trailed at half-time, only to come from behind to claim an improbable triumph under the stewardship of rookie manager Diego Simeone.

The 2007 Clausura was no less surprising. San Lorenzo are one of Argentina’s ‘Big Five’, but had been pathetic in that season’s Apertura, conceding twelve goals in their two matches against River Plate and Boca and finishing eleventh. In the Clausura, having brought River’s managerial legend Ramón Díaz back from England during the December-January summer break, San Lorenzo were a team transformed as Gastón Fernández – released to them by River – led their line to a championship which no-one would have believed months earlier.

The theme’s been continued this time round, then. Lanús were unheralded at the start of the campaign, and a few matches in were doing an even better job of conspicuously failing to look like championship contenders. They lost a ridiculously entertaining opening match 5-3 to early pace-setters Independiente, and it wasn’t until the fourth weekend that they got their first win. This, however, was a side in the form of their lives, having qualified for continental competition for the first time. And they were about to pick up steam domestically.

Lanús proceeded to lose only once in their next sixteen matches – and that was in the Monumental to River Plate, who at that stage were playing so well (in their own stadium, if not away) that the Brazilians of 1970 might have been just a little intimidated at the prospect of facing them. Along the way, Lanús have scored 34 goals and been praised by all who’ve watched them for their style, teamwork and attacking intent. After two straight sixth-place finishes, they went into Sunday’s match in La Bombonera knowing that a draw would be enough to hand them the title, whatever Tigre did to Argentinos Juniors in the afternoon’s other decisive match.

And here we come back to last December. Because the second of those two matches which Boca blew to hand Estudiantes a playoff chance which was ultimately taken was also in La Bombonera. Fifty-one weeks prior to this weekend’s match. And who were the opponents? Who came from 1-0 down at half time last December to win in the lions’ den and so dent Boca’s hopes of a third straight title win? We’ve come full circle: it was Lanús.

Boca, then, were out for revenge, regardless of a few rested players due to the importance they’re attaching to the upcoming Club World Championship in Japan. Getting a result in La Bombonera is one of the most difficult tasks in the footballing world: only three teams before this year (excepting, of course, Boca themselves) had won the title in matches in the stadium: River (twice), Racing and Rosario giants Newell’s Old Boys. But in one of the planet’s most intimidating stadia, Lanús took a first half lead through their leading scorer José Sand – like San Lorenzo’s Fernández deemed surplus to requirements at River – and, even after Martín Palermo had levelled for the hosts after the break, saw Boca’s Fabián Vargas sent off. Thereafter they controlled the ball as they have done so often in this campaign.

Lanús, who spent almost nothing prior to the start of the season, have concentrated on a couple of key ideas for the last two years: allowing one manager time to form a team in his own image; and giving that team time to gel together and blossom as a unit. Given the financial climate Argentine football operates in these days, that patience, and the determination to hang onto their most important players, was impressive. If they can do the same now after such an eye-catching title win, who knows where they can go from here?

It’s been a good six months for the little men, then. Tigre have their highest-ever finish – the top three have finished their matches now, and the club from the delta are guaranteed second place – whilst Argentinos Juniors, the club Diego Maradona start out at, and Lanús’s local rivals Banfield both go into the Apertura’s final round of matches with the chance to leapfrog Boca into third and/or fourth. Oh, and another ’small’ club, Arsenal de Sarandí, 50 years old this year, are taking a 3-2 lead into the second leg of the Copa Sudamericana final on Wednesday night.

People keep telling me the Premier League is the league to watch. Do they realise what they’re missing?

Read more from Sam, and about Lanús’s incredible triumph, at Hasta El Gol Siempre.