Fluminense beat Boca Juniors in feisty final to win Copa Libertadores for first time ever
The Rio outfit came out on top after extra time in a lively match at the Maracana on Saturday as both teams had a player sent off
Fluminense have beaten Boca Juniors after extra time in a feisty final to win the Copa Libertadores for the first time in their history.
The Rio de Janeiro outfit were effectively at home as the match was played in their stadium, the Maracana, and they went ahead after 36 minutes.
Veteran forward German Cano, a boyhood Boca fan from Buenos Aires province, fired Fluminense into the lead as he turned and powered a low drive past Sergio Romero from 15 yards out.
Peruvian winger Luis Advincula smashed an equaliser into the corner from outside the box with 72 minutes to stun the home fans and force extra time.
In it, Fluminense soon struck first as 21-year-old John Kennedy Batista de Souza as he hit a ball on the bounce into the bottom corner with a fierce drive.
Wild scenes ensued at the Maracana and the forward was shown a second yellow card after celebrating with the Fluminense fans.
But Boca were unable to take advantage of their extra man and Fabra was soon sent off as well after striking Nino across the face in an ill-tempered finale.
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Ben Hayward is a European football writer and Tottenham Hotspur fan with over 15 years’ experience, he has covered games all over the world - including three World Cups, several Champions League finals, Euros, Copa America - and has spent much of that time in Spain. Ben speaks English and Spanish, currently dividing his time between Barcelona and London, covering all the big talking points of the weekend on FFT: he’s also written several list features and interviewed Guglielmo Vicario for the magazine.
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