Anyone remember or saw the rollercoaster journey the Schalke 04 supporters got back in 2001? Then the supporters stormed the pitch after the last game of the season convinced they had won the Bundesliga. Four minutes and thirty-eight seconds of euphoric celebration were mercilessly cut off with the message that the Bayern Munich game was not finished after all. They had scored in injury time and taken the necessary point to pass Schalke 04 in the table. Now a similar story has played out in Argentine football.
Rosario Central began celebrating their title after the team defeated Estudiantes de Río Cuarto 2-0 in their final game of the season. The players climbed over the fence, and fans stormed the field in celebration. But in Arroyito, Rosario Central had misunderstood the situation.
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Players and fans believed that all other matches had been played and that the rivals from Boca Juniors would therefore have to settle for a 0-0 draw against Defensa y Justicia. A result that would have secured the Rosario Central championship. But the announcement of the draw had come too soon.
While Rosario Central celebrated their title, Enner Valencia scored in the final seconds of the game to secure a 1-0 victory over Defensa y Justicia. Thus, it was finally Boca Juniors who ran away with the Argentine championship after a dramatic end to the season.
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Only after a few minutes of celebration did the right message reach the stadium in Arroyito, and the joy was replaced by enormous disappointment for Rosario Central.
“We were confused. We celebrated too early because we got carried away by the crowd,” Rosario Central’s head coach, Jorge Almirón, explained in the post-match press conference to TyC Sports.
Rosario Central therefore had to settle for second place in the league, one point behind Boca Junior. Words to describe the emotions in both camps are superfluous.
