River Plate stole a point in their visit to Fortaleza (1-1) this Thursday in Brazil and came inches away from qualifying for the Copa Libertadores round of 16.
Marcelo Gallardo's 'millionaires', one of the favorites for the title, suffered against the Brazilians at the Arena Castelão stadium in Fortaleza, northeast Brazil.
But the Argentine goalkeeper showed his mettle to defend the draw achieved by Enzo Fernández, from a penalty in the 17th minute, after the home team had taken the lead with a beautiful goal by Argentine forward Silvio Romero (4).
Four-time Libertadores champions, River Plate maintained the lead in Group F with ten points with two games remaining.
Fortaleza's chances of qualifying, currently third with four points, will now depend largely on the result of the match between Colo Colo (second with six points) and Alianza Lima (last with zero points) this Thursday in Peru.
If the Chileans lose, River Plate will qualify tonight. Otherwise, they can do it when they host Colo Colo on Thursday, May 19, in the penultimate matchday. One day before that, Fortaleza will visit Alianza.
RIVER - FORTALEZA LIVE, MINUTE BY MINUTE
RIVER PLATE VS. FORTALEZA: WHEN AND AT WHAT TIME
River Plate visits Fortaleza this Thursday, May 5, at 19:00 hours in Argentina and Brazil (17:00 in Peru). Check the schedule according to each country:
17:00 hours - Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Mexico
18:00 hours - Venezuela, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay
19:00 hours - Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil
00:00 hours on Friday 6 - Spain, Germany, Italy, France
TV CHANNEL FOR RIVER PLATE VS. FORTALEZA
The River Plate vs Fortaleza match will be broadcast on Fox Sports in Argentina, while ESPN will broadcast it in Peru and other South American countries. If you want to watch the match online via streaming, you must tune in to STAR Plus.
River Plate comes from a 2-1 victory over Colo Colo in Santiago, and they took sole leadership of Group F, which they shared with 'Cacique' before the match. Matías Suárez (83) and Ezequiel Barco (89) scored the goals for 'Millonario' in the Chilean capital, while Juan Lucero (90+2) scored the goal for the 'albos'.
With the victory, the four-time Libertadores champions are now at the top of the group with 9 points, followed by Colo Colo with 6, Fortaleza from Brazil with 3, while Alianza Lima is at zero.
The fourth matchday could end with River Plate's early qualification for the round of 16, as they have obtained 9 out of 9 possible points so far. Fortaleza, on the other hand, is obliged to win if they want to continue fighting for qualification or secure a consolation spot in the Sudamericana, which they currently possess.
Ver noticia en El Comercio: DT