Without big numbers and with a football stamp, this team has made it clear that it is responding to DT/Fotobaires
And now? Who would have imagined this team present? How far can you go? Why did you reach the semi-finals? Can you feel the excitement? And the future of Eduardo Dominguez? There are many questions that have no answers today other than a general feeling that he has already achieved a lot, in the short and medium term.
Estudiantes reached the semi-finals of the Clausura tournament. He was the first of the four to enter the field. Boca is also there, the main candidate and most committed to keeping the cup. But Dominguez’s team, one of the last teams to qualify for the playoffs, was the first to arrive. They are on a plane with a ticket to glory.
Be careful, as today Estudiantes is experiencing this almost unimaginable moment with a 25 percent chance of winning the champion and entering the 2026 Copa Libertadores, we must not forget that this format is useless, neither empowering nor raising the level: quite the opposite. On a general level, the football world is not satisfied with the system despite the fact that the team that highlighted an irregular championship ends up winning, because with the exception of Boca (and up to that moment), the others had a lot of ups and downs during the year or the second semester.
But this brief reflection allows us to keep moving forward. Nobody gave anything to this team. Nobody and nothing. He lost points due to his own mistakes and the mistakes of others. The points he left behind in matches against Paracas, Boca, River and others (due to controversial refereeing rulings) would have given him a greater amount of points and even possibilities of qualifying via the annual Sudamericana table without this pressure or obligations.
Nor can attention be diverted from the fact that the refereeing has not been controversial in recent matches, nor turn the Argentine championship into a guide to decency and an example to be followed. Many episodes that will never be covered up or forgotten occurred in these last two dates. In any case.
This red team, as its coach Eduardo Domínguez said in the press conference at the Madre de Ciudades stadium, did not go through the window but in an uncomfortable way. Because this type of coordination leads to such situations and is what a large part of the football world wants to change, as it is already expressed in different areas of football.
Pincha reached the semi-finals due to scoring points in the moments when the tie knot was at its tightest. In the second date against Huracan it seemed that the cycle had ended. The elimination in the Copa Argentina, the internal short circuits, the final loss to Velez and the terrible start in Santa Fe against Union, signaled the end of the cycle. mistake.
The first resurrection of the plant
The same thing seems to be happening now at the end of the final tournament, especially after the three losses in the final after winning the Classic: it seemed as if the team was eager to start their vacation. Few fans were betting on renewing the energy of the players, the coaching staff and the leaders. What few believed happened. The team began restoring the Fortitude and Holy Fire at the most opportune moment, the moment that needed to be reached with fuel in the tank. Now you will be able to fully increase your speed in the final stage, which determines the important things in this tournament system.
This data is important to the team. In Rosario, he has already shown – in addition to his mettle – the defensive coordination, a goalkeeper in difficult moments and two figures from midfield onwards, which is necessary to mask the absence of the number “9”.
These are Cristian Medina and Edwin Sitri, designated for the attacking game. The former Boca looks little but appears as a receiver and passer of the ball. On Saturday, she was dominant in Palacios’ goal. The Colombian, again as a left winger, was a constant threat because in addition to being unbalanced he had vision and team play.
Two weeks ago it looked like it was a matter of judgment, and once again he was in the semi-finals
In addition to the good synchronization between the central defenders, Estudiantes found the best version of Ezequiel Piové. The coach summed up: “These are moments for the players.”
Dominguez was able to exchange criticism with praise. Those who looked askance at him two weeks ago were harsh but the team did not improve.
Pincha did not play well and they marked him easily. It seems that the cycle has truly ended. But once again the players defended him and that is why they achieved two landslide victories at a time of maximum media coverage.
The group includes the coach who succeeded in qualifying Estudiantes to the semi-finals for the third time in three years. If he leaves at the end of the year, as appears likely to happen, he will be left in bronze and with a passport to return whenever he pleases.
You have a lot to gain and lose. But whatever happens to this team in the short time remaining in the tournament, they have already managed to leave a mark, a brand and a style.
Estudiantes de Domínguez will be remembered for the way it plays even in the most difficult moments and for all the achievements. He should be one of the few who has always been champion and champion in all sections of the year in 2023/24/25. There are not many others who have achieved this.
Moreover, it is a team that was not afraid of media pressure. He faced tough opponents from a football perspective and something else. He faced the power of the AFC.
He has already won the fight no matter what happens to him from now on and tough eliminations can await him: Barracas de Chiqui Tapia or in the classic; Until a final match against Boca or Racing. Estudiantes de Domínguez managed to remember him in time.