Defensa y Justicia ran almost out of chances of winning group A in the Fase Complementacion after losing 3-0 at Rosario Central on 2nd January. After Central’s loss at Lanus last Saturday, Hernan Crespo’s men (with seven points in this second stage) remain trailing their last opponents by three, but they will need to win by six goals here to advance to the losers stage’s final. That defeat also stopped El Halcon’s four-game unbeaten run in top-flight action (three victories and one draw). At home, El Defensa won the last two domestic matches over Estudiantes and Patronato. On Tuesday 12, the side drew 0-0 against Chile’s Coquimbo Unido in Paraguay in the first leg of the Copa Sudamericana’s semi-finals. Coach Hernan Crespo will continue to field an alternative XI in the league as the return leg will take place on Saturday 16.

Aldosivi lost 3-1 to Union Santa Fe at home on 4th January, which means they managed only three points from 12 on offer in the second stage, having registered one win and three defeats in the Fase Complementacion. In fact, the team won only one of their last six matches in this competition, drawing one and losing four. Coach Angel Hoyos left the club in agreement with the board last Saturday. On a positive note, El Tiburon have been unbeaten in four away matches, having taken ten points in that spell.

Last game of the season and Defensa needs to win by 6 goals to reach the Fase Complementacion final and of course it won’t happen as they’ve played the Copa Sudamericana semifinal 2 days ago and will play the return leg in 2 days, but I have to expect this to be a very open game because they both have nothing to lose and the hosts have to try to score as much as possible.