There's nothing like seeing the Peruvian flag at the top of a leaderboard or international recognition, and that's what Bernardo Cuesta has achieved with Melgar's jersey. The Argentine forward finished as the top scorer in the Copa Sudamericana 2022 with his 8 goals.
SEE: Independiente del Valle, Sudamericana champion: Why should we learn from Ecuador in Peruvian football?
Independiente del Valle, the club that eliminated Melgar in the semifinals, became the champion of the Copa Sudamericana 2022. Forward Lautaro Díaz scored a goal, but he needed four to catch up with Bernardo Cuesta.
Thus, the Melgar striker managed to repeat the feat that Germán Carty had achieved with Cienciano in the 2003 title, leading the top scorers' table. The Peruvian forward had scored 6 goals almost 20 years ago wearing the colors of the Cusco team, in addition to celebrating the championship.
Bernardo Cuesta scored his 8 goals in 13 matches. Two goals in the preliminary stage against Cienciano, four in the group stage (3 against River Plate from Uruguay and one against Racing), and another two in the round of 16 against Deportivo Cali.
These are the only two times that a Peruvian club has had the top scorers of the tournaments. In fact, the previous records are only about Peruvian forwards in clubs from our country who finished as top scorers in the Copa Libertadores, in addition to Paolo Guerrero as the leading scorer in the Copa America.
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Ver noticia en El Comercio: DT