The 1986 Copa Interamericana was the tenth edition of the Copa Interamericana, the annual football match contested between the winners of the CONCACAF Champions' Cup and the Copa Libertadores. It was played over two legs between Alajuelense of Costa Rica and River Plate of Argentina. The first leg was played at Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto, Alajuela, on 25 July 1987 and the second leg was played on 16 August 1987 at the Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires. Both teams were appearing in the competition for the first time.
The teams had qualified for the tournament by winning the two seasonal continental competitions. River Plate were the reigning champions of the Copa Libertadores, winning the 1986 final against Colombian team América de Cali 3–1 on aggregate. Alajuelense won 1986 CONCACAF Champions' Cup, beating Surinamese team S.V. Transvaal 6–2 over two legs.
A crowd of 15,991 observed the first leg at the Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto, which resulted in a goalless draw. Watched by a crowd of 20,000 at the Estadio Monumental, River Plate took the lead in the first half when Jorge Villazán scored. Juan Gilberto Funes extended their lead in the second half, and Héctor Enrique added one further seven minutes later. Following a 3–0 scoreline, River Plate secured their first Copa Interamericana.
Background
The Copa Interamericana was an international competition, played between 1969 and 1998, which paired the champions of the South American tournament Copa Libertadores and the North American CONCACAF Champions' Cup to determine the best team in the Americas.[2] It was specially relevant for the North American teams, as it was the highest international honour their side could achieve.[3]
River Plate qualified for the match as the reigning Copa Libertadores winners. They had won the 1986 Copa Libertadores final by beating Colombian team América de Cali 3–1 on aggregate.[4] They were making their first appearance in the Copa Interamericana.[5]
Alajuelense qualified for the competition as a result of winning the 1986 CONCACAF Champions' Cup. They had beaten Surinamese side S.V. Transvaal 6–2 over two legs to become the first Costa Rican team to win a North American trophy. Therefore, they were making their first appearance in the Copa Interamericana as the first Costa Rican team to compete in the tournament.[6]
First leg
Summary
Goalkeeper Alejandro González withstood River Plate's offensive pressure.
The first leg was held at the Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto, the home ground of Alajuelense. River Plate manager Carlos Griguol fielded a 4–3–3 formation for the match, as he expected his team to be superior to their opposition. The hosts would reply with a defensive scheme.[7] Nonetheless, Alajuelense stood up to the Argentine side, coming close on several occasions to the goal defended by Sergio Goycochea through Juan Cayasso, Álvaro Solano and Óscar Ramírez. They would be forced into a substitution in the 35th minute, when Miguel Ángel Vargas sustained an injury. Fellow defender Claudio Benavidez was his replacement.[8] Although Alajuelense eventually abandoned their attacking approach, the visitors failed to deliver on their desired performance.[7] River Plate had bettered their offensive efforts in the second half, creating numerous chances to open the scoring, but they ran into goalkeeper Alejandro González, who fended them off successfully and thus carried the tie into the second leg.[8]
River Plate came away with a very different impression on Alajuelense, as their captain Américo Gallego later admitted: "What I liked most about the Costa Rican team was that they wanted to respect the spectacle and played toe-to-toe with our team. It was undoubtedly a very tough match". Carlos Griguol also praised Alajuelense on their showing: "The result doesn’t surprise me. I had heard about them and how well prepared they are."[8]
Czechoslovak manager Josef Bouška addressed his team's performance, stating: "Costa Rican football can compete with that of any place in the world". Coming into the second leg, he further added: "We'll go to Buenos Aires with the mindset of performing well and avoiding a catastrophe."[8]
At the Estadio Monumental, the home side decided to go all out from the start, taking an offensive approach. Alajuelense opted to sit back, looking to take advantage of any counter-attack prospects that arose. They managed to cancel their opposition out, steering clear of danger with Ronald Mora being the centrepiece of their defensive production, but would ultimately concede the opening goal in the 16th minute.[9]Juan Gilberto Funes dribbled his way into the box and unveiled a low cross towards Uruguayan winger Jorge Villazán, who tapped the ball into the net.[10] The renewed scoreline dealt a blow to the visitors' morale, as they struggled to get to the opposing area.[9]
The home side came out strong again in the second half, as the course of the match remained unchanged. Even though Alajuelense increased their offensive efforts, powered by Juan Cayasso, River Plate's level of play and dominance prevailed, as they extended their lead at the 60-minute mark.[9]Américo Gallego sent a cross over to Jorge Borelli, who headed it across the penalty area for Funes to pounce on.[10] Shortly after, the home team switched wingers when Carlos Griguol replaced Villazán with Antonio Alzamendi.[9] Just a minute later, a loft was sent by Héctor Enrique over to Ramón Centurión, who was tussling with his marker. Alejandro González shifted his focus to the struggle, not paying attention to the trajectory of the ball as it went into the goal, sealing the match with a 3–0 scoreline.[10]
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