Six-times Libertadores winner Boca had the best opportunity to score in the 56th minute, but Nicolas Blandi's header hit the post from a Juan-Roman Riquelme cross.

Twenty seconds later, Boca was reduced to 10 men when defender Clemente Rodriguez was shown red for protesting a referee's decision and although Newell's tried, it found it impossible to beat keeper Agustin Orion in Rosario.

Finally, after 26 spot kicks, former Liverpool midfielder Maxi Rodriguez netted the winning penalty - his second successful spot-kick in the shootout.

"I'm proud of coaching a very good team," Newell's head coach Gerardo Martino said.

"I guide a group of brave players and that is a key point in this team.

"Tonight, we had more ball possession but we were not accurate in finishing.

Riquelme, who missed his first effort from the spot, told reporters: "Penalties are a matter of which team is more lucky.

"We played against the best Argentinian team according to everybody's thoughts, and we had the most important chances to score so we are not that bad."

Newell's will playe either Brazil's Atletico Mineiro or Tijuana of Mexico in the final four.

Paraguay giant Olimpia made it into the semi-finals after eliminating Brazil champion Fluminense 2-1.

After a 0-0 tie in the first leg in Rio, Fluminense went ahead in the ninth minute when Rhayner took advantage of a mistake by defender Julio Manzur to open the scoring.

The home side refused to panic and levelled in the 35th minute courtesy of a Salgueiro free-kick, before he same player put Olimpia in front four minutes later.

Digao fouled Freddy Bareiro in the box and up stepped Salgueiro to put his side ahead.

"We are very happy because this is what we expected. We've fought a lot for six months and we deserved to progress," Salgueiro told Fox Sports.

"We met a great team, we defended quite a lot and took the positive result we wanted. Now, the decisive stages start."

Olimpia will face Colombia's Santa Fe, which eliminated Peru's Real Garcilaso in the last eight.

Rinaldo Cruzado opened the scoring from the spot in the seventh minute but the floodgates did not open until after Lisandro Magallan had seen red a minute before the break.

In the second half, Newell's made the most of the man advantage with goals from Horacio Orzan (66), Martin Tonso (68) and Maximiliano Urruti (71).

That allowed Newell's to but some distance between itself and the chasing pack as Lanus, second at the start of the day, lost 3-1 at San Martin San Juan.

Gaston Caprari put San Juan ahead in the eighth minute but Fernando Barrientos levelled just before the half-hour mark.

The host re-established its lead after 71 minutes through Damian Ledesma, who promptly earned himself a red card, then sealed the win a minute from time courtesy of Claudio Riano to boost its survival bid.

River Plate leapfrogged Lanus into second with a 3-0 win over Atletico Rafaela.

All the goals came in the first half, through Leonel Vangioni (eight), an own goal from Eduardo Dominguez (14) and Carlos Luna (32).

Godoy Cruz lost ground on the leaders after a 1-1 draw at Racing Club.

Goalkeeper Sebastian Saja put Racing in front with a 43rd-minute penalty, but Jose Luis Fernandez levelled after 64 minutes, leaving Godoy Cruz eight points off top spot with four games to go.

The day's other game, between Belgrano Cordoba and relegation-threatened Independiente, finished goalless.

Ignacio Scocco's ninth-minute strike had put the visitor ahead but Caneo notched three minutes from time to hand sixth-placed Quilmes a share of the spoils.

Godoy Cruz climbed to fourth position with a 3-1 victory over second-bottom Velez Sarsfield.

Three goals in 15 minutes at the start of the second half - from Jose Luis Fernandez, Gonzalo Castellani and Nicolas Castro - put the host in control before Facundo Ferreyra notched a late consolation for the visitors.

Juan Manuel Martinez grabbed the game's only goal four minutes into the second half as Boca Juniors claimed just its second win of the season. It prevailed 1-0 against Colon, whose cause was not helped by the 74th-minute dismissal of Bruno Urribarri.

Finally, Estudiantes posted only a third win of the campaign with a 2-0 triumph at seventh-spotted Atletico Rafaela, Duvan Zapata opening the scoring in the seventh minute and Roman Martinez sealing matters at the death.

Veteran playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme put Boca ahead in the 25th minute with a brilliant long-range shot which flew over the body of Corinthians goalkeeper Cassio Ramos.

That left Club World Cup champion Corinthians needing three goals to progress from the last-16 tie.

The host side introduced former AC Milan forward Alexandre Pato in place of Romarinho at the start of the second half and equalised on the night through Paulinho's 51st-minute header, but could not make any further inroads.

"We are very happy because we were confident in the team we have," Riquelme told Fox Sports.

"We played a great first half and we knew the second was going to be tough as Corinthians were stepping forward."

Pato passed up a fine chance to set up a tense finish towards the end, and Boca goalkeeper Agustin Orion had to be on his toes to keep Carlos Bianchi's side on course to to claim a seventh Libertadores crown.

"We proved we want to be in top positions," Orion said.

"As Corinthians were losing, they were going to attack us a lot. We played a great match tonight."

Boca will host the first leg of the last-eight tie against Newell's Old Boys, possibly next Thursday (Friday AEST).

Newell's prevailed 2-1 at Argentinian champions Velez Sarsfield to seal a 2-2 aggregate draw and win the tie on away goals.

Milton Casco's third-minute goal ensured Newell's got off to the perfect start, and the visiting side doubled its lead four minutes before the break when Ignacio Scocco stole possession from defender Juan Sabia and beat Velez goalkeeper Sebastian Sosa at the second attempt.

Substitute Facundo Ferreyra struck seven minutes from time to give Velez hope, but they could not find any more goals and crashed out.

River Plate, which started the game five points behind leader Lanus, took a first-minute lead through Manuel Lanzini, but Santiago Silva levelled it up six minutes before the break.

Trouble erupted in the stands in the second half, causing a temporary halt to the action, and the bad blood was felt on the pitch too in the final minute when Boca defender Guillermo Burdisso was sent off.

Adrian Fernandez's first-half brace gave Independiente a 2-0 away win over Tigre with goals in the ninth and 40th minutes.

Atletico Rafaele played an hour with 10 men but still managed to come from behind with two late goals and beat San Martin San Juan 2-1.

Things were looking grim for Atletico after Lucas Landa put the visitor ahead in the 17th minute and then Matias Fissore saw red on the half-hour mark.

But Federico Gonzalez levelled it in the 84th minute and then snatched a winner from the penalty spot in the 89th minute.

Nicolas Blandi got the only goal in the 59th minute but Boca was left to finish the match with 10 men as substitute Pablo Ledesma was sent off with six minutes to go.

Ledesma collected two yellow cards just seconds apart, the first a caution for celebrating what proved to be a disallowed goal and then a second two minutes later for a crude challenge on Teles Ralf.

Gremio beat Colombia's Independiente Sante Fe 2-1 despite playing with 10 men for the last 37 minutes.

Eduardo Vargas put the Brazilian host ahead in the 28th minute but Independiente levelled when Cris brought down Jefferson Cuero in the area and Omar Perez netted from the spot.

Cris saw red for the challenge but the visitor could not capitalise on the man advantage and Fernando grabbed the winner with a low drive.

The draw, made after the final round of group matches in this year's competition, also saw Brazil's Atletico Mineiro paired with compatriot Sao Paulo.

Santa Fe was paired with Gremio, Olimpia faces Tigre, Velez Sarsfield comes up against Newell's Old Boys, Garcilaso takes on Nacional, Fluminense tackles Emelec and Palmeiras meets Tijuana.

Brazilian sides Gremio, Fluminense and Palmeiras complete the line-up.

Fluminense and Gremio grabbed the top two positions in Group Eight after an exciting climax.

Flu only needed a draw against Caracas but it beat the Venezuelan side 1-0 thanks to a Rafael Sobis goal early in the second half.

Huachipato drew 1-1 with Gremio in Chile in a game that was marred by a violent end.

Ze Roberto opened the scoring in the first half but two minutes before the end Huachipato set up an exciting climax with an equaliser from Miguel Aceval.

Both teams finished levelled on eight points but the Brazilian club qualified thanks to a better goal difference.

The altercation began after the Chilean club accused Gremio coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo of provoking it.

Huachipato coach Jorge Pellicer and several players charged after Luxemburgo, who tried to run away but was not able to make it to the changing room in time.

The former Real Madrid coach turned around and raised his arms to try to defend himself, then slipped and fell to the ground as at least two players attacked him before the police intervened.

Huachipato fans also apparently entered the pitch and tried to go after the Gremio players, while some ball boys were captured throwing balls at the Brazilian team's players.

Huachipato players also were seen kicking balls at players and at the riot police.

Palmeiras finished top of Group Two despite losing 1-0 to an Irven Avila goal for Sporting Cristal in Peru.

Argentina's Tigre claimed the second position after a 5-3 victory in Paraguay over Libertad.

Libertad needed only a draw to qualify but found itself behind to a goal from Ruben Botta in the 10th minute.

Miguel Samudio equalised, but Matias Perez Garcia put the Argentine side ahead and Gaston Diaz's penalty made it 3-1, before Jose Nunez reduced the arrears just before the break.

Perez Garcia and Botta both scored their second goals to put Tigre out of sight - but a goal by Pablo Velazquez for Libertad in injury-time denied it top spot on goal difference.

The 63-year-old, the only coach to win four Copa Libertadores, came back as general manager four years ago and will take the reins again as the club tries to improve on sixth place after the initial league tournament of the season or Torneo Inicial, well adrift of tabletopper Velez Sarsfield.

"Carlos Bianchi has accepted the club's offer and he will be once again coach of Boca," club chairman Daniel Angelici wrote on Twitter.

The return of the man known popularly as 'The Viceroy' comes with fans having demanded the replacement of Julio Cesar Falcioni during the win over Godoy Cruz at Boca's Bombonera stadium cauldron.

Bianchi won the hearts and minds of Boca fans in two previous stints with the Buenos Aires-based side with which Diego Maradona made his name by landing four Argentine league titles, three Copa Libertadores and two Intercontinental Cups between 1998 and 2004.

Angelici had said on Friday when he first revealed he had made an approach to Bianchi that the choice was self-evident, given his record.

"He is the most successful coach in Boca's history - he knows what Boca is all about," Angelici said.

Before achieving fame as a coach, Bianchi was also a successful player and is the highest-scoring Argentine in top-flight football history, home and abroad spells included.

He scored 206 goals in two stints with first club Velez Sarsfield and 179 for French sides Reims, Paris Saint-Germain and Strasbourg.

But those achievements are easily forgotten given his coaching success - he won his first Libertadores title with Velez Sarsfield in 1994 before adding three more crowns with Boca, while landing Intercontinental Cup honours with both.

The 63-year-old, the only coach to win four Copa Libertadores, came back as general manager four years ago and now will take the reins again as the club trys to improve on sixth place after the initial league tournament of the season or Torneo Inicial, well adrift of table-topper Velez Sarsfield.

The return of the man known popularly as 'The Viceroy' comes with fans having demanded the replacement of Julio Cesar Falcioni during last weekend's win over Godoy Cruz at Boca's cauldron of a Bombonera stadium.

Bianchi won the hearts and minds of Boca fans in two previous stints with the Buenos Aires-based side with which Diego Maradona made his name by landing four Argentine league titles, three Copa Libertadores and two Intercontinental Cups between 1998 and 2004.

"We are happy and optimistic," Angelici said, while admitting the deal was not yet signed.

"Fans can be assured that we are on the right track. Bianchi will take the weekend (off) and then on Monday we are going to take a final decision. I don't think he will say no," said Angelici after meeting Bianchi to finalise details.

Angelici said the choice of Bianchi was self-evident, given his record.

"He is the most successful coach in Boca's history - he knows what Boca is all about," Angelici said, adding that the talks had gone well.

Before achieving fame as a coach Bianchi was also a successful player and is the highest-scoring Argentine to date in the history of top flight football, home and abroad spells included.

He scored 206 goals in two stints with first club Velez Sarsfield and 179 for French sides Reims, Paris Saint-Germain and Strasbourg.

But those achievements are easily forgotten given his coaching success - he won his first Libertadores title with Velez Sarsfield in 1994 before adding three more crowns with Boca, while landing Intercontinental Cup honours with both.

A brief and unhappy spell with Roma preceded his arrival at Boca but his welter of titles back in Argentina more than made up for that.

Bianchi will return to the hot seat six years after his last actual coaching role - a brief stint with Atletico Madrid after which he entered what he termed an extended 'siesta' before he returned in 2009 to Boca as assistant manager for a year prior to entering what seemed a well-earned retirement.

The outgoing Falcioni won the Tourneo Inicial in 2011 and the Argentinian Cup earlier this year but poor recent league form means his contract is not being renewed.

Leonardo Ponzio's early free-kick, which left keeper Agustin Orion groping at thin air, put River, promoted last season a year after its first relegation stunned fans across the nation, into an opening minute lead on Sunday.

It looked even better for Matias Almeyda's men when Uruguayan Rodrigo Mora made it 2-0 midway through the second half at River's Monumental Stadium after former France star David Trezeguet linked-up with Carlos Sanchez.

But another Uruguayan, Santiago Silva, reduced the arrears with a 75th-minute penalty following German Pezzella's foul on Santiago Silva before Walter Erviti rescued a point in the first minute of stoppage time.

The point left Boca in fifth place, three points ahead of its Buenos Aires rival.

River had to reshuffle the pack with Almeyda having to take off defender Ramiro Funes Mori and Martin Aguirre after they suffered knee injuries in the opening period as 50,000 ferociously partisan fans looked on.

Leandro Gonzalez Pirez replaced Mori after just four minutes while Ariel Rojas came on for Aguirre just nine minutes later, disrupting River's solid start.

Although Boca will be the happier with the draw, in what was the first meeting of the pair in 17 months, a title challenge has not materialised so far this season as it trails leader Newell's Old Boys by seven points after 12 games.

The Buenos Aires derby encounter has been described as the world's most intense sporting experience, pitting together two teams of more than a century's standing.

Both clubs were formed in a gritty part of Buenos Aires where Boca remains while River moved in the 1920s to a more upmarket area.

Games are traditionally passionate but tragedy struck the fixture after a dour 0-0 draw in 1968, when 90,000 people poured into the Monumental and 71 fans were crushed to death in the worst tragedy to hit Argentinian football.

The 34-year-old shocked fans last week after Boca lost the final of the Copa Libertadores, saying he had nothing left to give to the club and was stepping away.

Several South American clubs immediately showed interest in signing Riquelme, including Brazil side Flamengo and Tigre of Argentina.

About two dozen groups of fans gathered across the country on Monday, the largest of which took place at Boca's Bombonera stadium.

Riquelme gave no indication on Monday that he had changed his mind. Riquelme's departure is thought to be linked to differences over playing tactics he has with Boca Juniors coach Julio Cesar Falcioni.

Riquelme revealed his decision in the wake of his side's Copa Libertadores loss to Corinthians. Boca lost 2-0 in the second leg in Brazil to go down 3-1 on aggregate.

The 34-year-old has spent 12 years in two spells at Boca ether side of a stint in Europe and he feels he has given all he can to the Argentinian giants.

"I'm not going to continue. I feel empty, I don't think I have any more to give to this club. I can't play at 50 per cent," he was quoted as saying on Boca's official website, www.bocajuniors.com.ar.

"I love this club, I will be forever grateful to this club. I'll always be there if they need anything, now I need to go home."

Regarding his future plans, the former Argentina international said: "I'm going to talk with my friends and with my family and see if they want to see me play a little more."

Riquelme began his professional career at Boca and spent six seasons in the first-team squad at La Bombonera before joining Barcelona in 2002. After three years at the Nou Camp he moved to Barca's Primera Division rivals Villarreal in 2005.

He then returned to Boca on a season-long loan in 2007 before permanently moving back to his former club.

During his time at Boca, Riquelme won the Copa Libertadores three times and helped the club claim five league titles. He also won more than 50 caps for Argentina.

The teams played out a 1-1 draw in last week's first meeting in Buenos Aires - a result which pleased the Brazilian side more than the Argentinian outfit - and two second-half goals from Emerson ensured Corinthians finished the job in Sao Paulo.

The victory secured not only a maiden Libertadores title for Tite's Corinthians, which went through the competition unbeaten, but also a place in December's FIFA Club World Cup in Japan.

A scrappy first half at the Estadio Pacaembu took a turn for the worse for Boca in the 32nd minute, when goalkeeper Agustin Orion collided with team-mate Leandro Somoza and was forced to leave the pitch with a knee injury.

Sebastian Sosa, who lost the 2011 Libertadores final with Penarol against Santos, replaced Orion between the posts but was powerless to prevent Emerson from opening the scoring eight minutes into the second half.

Alex's free-kick into the box was deflected by the head of Jorge Henrique towards Danilo, whose neat flick set up Emerson for a cool right-footed finish.

Boca coach Julio Falcioni made attacking substitutions by replacing midfielder Pablo Ledesma with forward Dario Cvitanich in a bid to get back on level terms, but it was soon hit with a sucker-punch as a bad mistake from defender Rolando Schiavi allowed the host to double the lead.

Schiavi misdirected a pass straight to Emerson, who ran more than 40 metres before unleashing his shot past Sosa.

"I am very happy because we know the history Boca Juniors have in worldwide football and in the Copa Libertadores," Emerson told Fox Sports.

"Our crowd represents 33 million fans. Since this year's Libertadores started, we have dreamt of clinching the title. We were all in need of this achievement."

Danilo, a previous Libertadores winner with Sao Paulo, said: "We totally deserved this. We did not lose any games.

"It is extraordinary for us to win this title, which Corinthians had never won in the past."

Defender Leandro Castan added: "We have made it into the history of the club.

"Maybe it was my last game at Corinthians but I will announce it on Friday. Now, it's time to celebrate. Boca were great rivals."

Corinthians became the ninth Brazilian team to lift the Copa Libertadores - joining Santos (1962, 1963 and 2011), Cruzeiro (1976 and 1997), Flamengo (1981), Gremio (1983 and 1995), Sao Paulo (1992, 1993 and 2005), Vasco da Gama (1998), Palmeiras (1999) and Internacional (2006 and 2010).

Boca Juniors is still trying to solve contractual issues involving defender Facundo Roncaglia, while Corinthians is waiting to see if midfielder Jorge Henrique will recover from a muscle injury.

Corinthians scored late to earn a 1-1 draw in the first leg last week in Argentina. The team will clinch its first title in Latin America's most important club competition with a home victory at Pacaembu stadium.

Boca Juniors is hoping to win its seventh Copa Libertadores trophy, which would draw it level with Argentine rival Independiente as the most successful clubs in the tournament's history.

Roncaglia was one of three players whose contracts with Boca Juniors expired after the first leg last week, along with forward Dario Cvitanich and defender Rolando Schiavi.

Boca Juniors said it was able to extend Schiavi's contract, but Cvitanich had already agreed to a deal with Ajax and Roncaglia was set to join Fiorentina.

Boca Juniors announced on Sunday that Ajax will allow Cvitanich to play in exchange for extra financial compensation to the Dutch club, but it was still waiting on an insurance deal that would let right back Roncaglia participate. The deal had not been made by Monday afternoon (local time).

Roncaglia scored Boca Juniors' 73rd-minute goal in the first leg.

Boca Juniors coach Julio Cesar Falcioni closed the team's final practice on Sunday before it travelled to Sao Paulo on Monday.

Corinthians, in its first Copa Libertadores final, also practiced at the weekend but coach Tite could not count on Jorge Henrique, who injured his right thigh in the first leg at the La Bombonera and had to be replaced in the 39th minute.

Corinthians doctors say Jorge Henrique has a chance to play, but a decision won't be made until closer to Wednesday's (Thursday AEST) match.

The defending Brazilian champion moved into good position to win the Copa Libertadores for the first time when substitute striker Romarinho scored an 85th-minute goal in Buenos Aires.

"Now we will be playing at home, in front of our fans," Corinthians playmaker Danilo told local media. "We have a chance to play better here, and hopefully it will be enough for us to win the title."

Romarinho is one of the players who could replace Jorge Henrique, along with Willian or veteran striker Liedson. Either way, Corinthians will remain at full strength in defense, its strong suit in this year's competition. The popular Brazilian club is yet to lose and has allowed only four goals in 13 matches so far.

Boca Juniors, playing in its 10th final, hasn't lost an away match in this year's tournament, winning three times and drawing three times on its way to the final against Corinthians.

Boca Juniors' only loss in this year's Copa Libertadores was at home against Brazil's Fluminense in the group stage.

The Argentine powerhouse will be trying to win its fifth title in 12 years, and the first since 2007.

Corinthians midfielder Paulinho made Agustin Orion work early on as the goalkeeper turned a powerful shot out for a corner in the seventh minute.

Corinthians coach Tite was forced to replace injured forward Jorge Henrique with Liedson six minutes before half-time and Boca struggled to get to grips with him.

But in the 73rd minute Boca took the lead.

After a corner kick by Pablo Mouche from the left, Santiago Silva's header struck the post, via the hand of Corinthians defender Chicao.

The ball rebounded to defender Roncaglia, though, who crashe in the rebound to delight the home fans.

Ten minutes later, Romarinho came on for Danilo to add some speed to the Corinthians attack.

On 85 minutes Paulinho stole the ball off Juan Roman Riquelme and passed it to Emerson, who then played in Romarinho.

The 21-year-old beat Orion with a deft little chip, his first involvement in the game, to equalise and silence the Boca fans.

Boca had the last opportunity to win the game in injury time, but a Lucas Viatri header hit the bar.

"I am very happy to have helped the team. Tite told me to play close to the sides and use my speed," Romarinho told Fox Sports.

"We are happy because we were the away side, we were down and managed to equalise."

"It's a shame, but we are fine, we know there are 90 minutes left," he said.

"We tried to win the game from the first minute. We took the initiative and we'll try to do so in Brazil.

"We could have won it and maybe we are a little bit angry about that."

The return match will be played at the Estadio Pacaembu in Sao Paulo next week. The away-goals rule is not used at this stage.

"We drew because of the big star we have in the squad (Romarinho), but we know we did not play the way we can," Corinthians's Alex said.

"We need to play much better if we want to win the title. Boca are a very tough team."

Boca is aiming for a seventh Copa Libertadores title, while Corinthians is playing in its first final.

The Argentine side will face Brazil's Corinthians in the final after a 2-0 aggregate success after a first-leg win a week ago, which came thanks to goals from Santiago Silva and Juan Sanchez Mino.

Boca had chances to extend its lead in the first half, starting in the seventh minute when Juan Roman Riquelme volleyed against the crossbar.

Pable Mouche then missed two one-on-one opportunities before Universidad finally mustered a goal threat, with Junior Fernandes' header well saved by Agustin Orion.

The Chilean side improved in the second half and twice hit the crossbar, through Marcelo Diaz and Raul Ruidiaz, while Osvaldo Gonzalez tested Orion and Matias Rodriguez headed just wide.

"We gave our best but we didn't lose the tie here, we failed in Buenos Aires," Diaz, reflecting on Universidad's fourth semi-final exit from the competition, said.

Coach Jorge Sampaoli added: "We have no regrets. We are very clear that we made history for the club."

Victory over the two legs sees Boca match Uruguayan side Penarol's record of 10 Libertadores final appearances.

"We played very well. I think we had to kill off the tie in the first half, when we had a lot of chances," captain Riquelme, who led his side to victory in 2007, said.

"Then we suffered tiredness, but thanks to God we were not at any risk."

Looking ahead to the final, he added: "This is very important for Boca. The club didn't participate in the last two editions, but we returned and showed we are a big team by reaching the final.

"Corinthians play good football and will be tough opponents. I'm sure it will be a hard final."

The first leg of the final will be played next week at La Bombonera with the return match seven days later at Estadio do Pacaembu.

Boca took a giant step towards their 10th Libertadores final thanks to goals from Santiago Silva and Juan Sanchez Mino in last week's first meeting at La Bombonera.

The Argentinian giant will now look to finish off the job in Santiago and set up a final showdown against Santos or Corinthians.

However, Universidad de Chile skipper Rojas is not giving up on the tie although he knows his side needs to produce something special in front of their own fans.

He also knows how important it is to put the shackles on Boca star Juan Roman Riquelme if Universidad de Chile is to keep alive its hopes of a maiden Libertadores title.

Rojas said of the veteran playmaker: "You give him 30 centimetres to play freely and he manages to set up a goal."

Rojas added: "We must play a perfect match in order to keep progressing. Boca are a team who knows how to play decisive rounds, but we have to believe in ourselves and be all together.

"We reached this stage because we had sacrifice and we must not let that slip in two games."

The Chilean side also has an impressive home record to fall back on, with the team having won its past 14 competitive matches at the Estadio Nacional.

Coach Jorge Sampaoli knows it will not be straightforward though, saying: "The return game will be tough, because we suffered a score that is not easy to overcome."

Emilio Zelaya opened the scoring in just the second minute, before Luciano Leguizamon netted either side of half-time to give Arsenal a comfortable cushion.

Boca, which had led the table for much of the season, had Franco Sosa sent off in the 85th minute.

Heading into the final round of matches Arsenal sits top, level on points and goal difference with Tigre and leading only on goals scored.

Copa Libertadores semi-finalist Boca, going for the treble, is two points back of its two rivals.

Arsenal hosts Belgrano Cordoba, Tigre entertains Independiente and Boca goes to All Boys in the final round.

Elsewhere, Cesar Carignano scored twice to lead Atletico Rafaela to a 4-2 win over Racing Club.

Carignano netted from the spot after 37 minutes but Atletico found itself 2-1 down thanks to goals either side of half-time from Bruno Zuculini (45) and Lucas Castroman (56).

Alexis Castro levelled just a minute later though, before goals from Carignano and Federico Gonzalez sealed the points.

Argentinos Juniors beat All Boys 1-0 in a match which ended up nine v seven.

Jonathan Ferrari was first to go for All Boys in the 16th minute, before Juan Rodriguez joined his team-mate in the 50th minute, along with German Basualdo for the host.

Juniors' 10 men netted through Juan Jose Morales in the 74th minute, but he was sent off to even up the sides two minutes later - before All Boys lost two more, Maximiliano Coronel (80) and Mauro Matos (90).

The day's other game, between Independiente and San Lorenzo, was goalless.

Independiente had Julian Velazquez sent off in the 49th minute.

The host opened the scoring after 15 minutes. Pablo Mouche sped down the right and found Santiago Silva, who controlled the ball in the box and beat goalkeeper Jhonny Herrera with a low shot.

The Chilean side reacted as Boca keeper Agustin Orion saved a free-kick from Marcelo Diaz and a long-range shot by Eugenio Mena went just wide.

Shortly after half-time, Herrera did well to keep out Silva's header and Albert Acevedo cleared Pablo Ledesma's shot.

Mouche then fired over when through on goal.

In the 55th minute, a good combination between Juan Roman Riquelme and Silva set up Walter Erviti, whose left-foot shot was cleared by Herrera. Juan Sanchez Mino grabbed the rebound and pushed the ball into the net.

Riquelme said: "We have to be calm. We scored two goals but we will have hard work to do in Chile against a very good team."

Universidad defender Jose Rojas added: "We wanted to play as equals today but they were very effective.

"Anyway, we already showed that at home we can play our best football. In this sport nothing is impossible."

The second leg of the tie will be played next week in Santiago with the winner facing either Corinthians or Santos.

Six-times champion Boca Juniors advanced after salvaging a 1-1 draw against Fluminense with Santiago Silva's 90th-minute goal.

Boca advanced 2-1 on aggregate, having won the first leg 1-0 last week in Argentina.

Midfielder Carleto opened the scoring for Fluminense with a long-range free kick that deflected off the wall.

The match was headed to a penalty shootout when Silva scored the decisive goal at the packed Engenhao stadium in Rio de Janeiro.

Silva found the net from close range after Diego Rivero's shot struck the far post and came back across the area. Fluminense goalkeeper Diego Cavalieri partially deflected the ball after the rebound but Silva charged in to score.

"It was incredible. Our keeper had a very quiet night, they only attacked one time and it was a goal," Fluminense coach Abel Braga said.

"It was a very even match, very similar to the one we played in La Bombonera. The truth is that Fluminense found a goal with some luck," Boca playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme said.

"In the only time we did three consecutive passes, we scored. It was crucial, because we gave a big step to reach the final."

A late goal also decided the all-Brazil quarter-final tie between Cortinthians and Vasco da Gama.

For Vasco veteran Juninho Pernambucano's free-kick just cleared the bar and then Diego Souza was one-on-one with Cassio but hit his lob too close to the keeper who was able to save.

Paulinho settled the tie with a header from an Alex corner.

"This qualification was the merit of the entire team, and I think it was well deserved," Paulinho said.

"Now, we have to rest and start thinking of our next rivals."

Second-half substitute Lucas Viatri scored a spectacular goal in the 69th minute, receiving a pass with a back heel and flicking it instantly over his shoulder - then chasing it down and pounding home a 15-metre volley.

Nicolas Blandi added another in the 82nd with a 15-metre rising shot.

Boca has 29 points from 15 matches, one better than Tigre and Newell's.

Boca rested many of its top players including key midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme, preparing for a second-leg quarter-final at Brazil's Fluminense on Thursday (AEST) in the Copa Libertadores. Boca leads 1-0 after the first leg in Argentina.

In other results Rafaela and Colon drew 0-0, Belgrano beat Velez Sarsfield 1-0 and Olimpo accounted for Independiente 2-1.

Nestor Silvera scored the only goal in Belgrano's victory.

Another Nestor - this time Nestor Bareiro - netted the winner for Olimpo in the 68th minute. He also scored in the seventh to put Olimpo ahead. Ernesto Farias scored in the 20th for Independiente.

Boca is looking for a big sweep this season. It won the first half of the Argentine season - called the Apertura - and is on course to win the second half, too.

The famous Buenos Aires club is also a favourite to reach the semi-finals of the Copa Libertadores, which it has won six times.

Mouche scored from a sharp-angled, left-footed shot from 10 meters (yards) that sneaked inside the far post behind keeper Diego Cavalieri.

The Rio de Janeiro club played with 10 men after Carlinhos was shown a red card in the 34th following a bruising tackle.

"We needed to win at home and after the first goal we were hopeful of getting another," Juniors midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme said. "But we lacked finishing. We didn't bother them as much as we should have."

With former star and Manchester City forward Carlos Tevez watching at Boca's La Bombonera stadium, the home side started slowly but was in control by the time Carlinhos was sent off.

Boca began to press and came up with a chance in the 18th when Cavalieri stopped Facundo Roncaglia on a close-in shot. Minutes later, Dario Cvitanich sailed a shot over the crossbar.

Boca had all the possession with the man advantage.

Cavalieri sprawled to stop Mouche in the 41st. A minute later, Riquelme shot just wide of the near post, and seconds later Cavalieri came up with a save on Rolando Schiavi.

Referee Hernan Buitrago missed a penalty late in the first half with replays showing Roncaglia stopped a shot in the area with his outstretch arm.

Boca Juniors had most of the chances in the second half, but failed to get a second goal to give them a strong edge in the second leg. Fluminense was the more threatening club in the final minutes.

Striker Mauro Obolo headed home Emiliano Papa's cross to give the host the lead after good work from Francisco Cerro and Augusto Fernandez.

With Newell's having moved three points clear at the summit on Sunday (AEST) thanks to a 3-1 victory over Union Santa Fe, Julio Cesar Falcioni's side was looking to respond but could find no way through the Velez defence.

The host's cause was not helped by the dismissal of Facundo Roncaglia four minutes before half-time. The visitor could not capitalise on its man advantage but moved up a place to sixth with the point.

Third-placed Tigre was also held to a draw, 1-1 at Colon Santa Fe, after playing for three quarters of the match a man down.

Carlos Luna secured the point with a 13th-minute leveller after Sebastian Prediger had put Colon ahead in the first minute. Tigre defender Lucas Orban saw red in the 22nd minute but there were no further goals.

Elsewhere, Jose Morales netted an 89th-minute winner as Argentinos Juniors edged Racing Club 2-1 to climb to ninth.

The game looked to be heading for a draw after Juan Ramirez's early opener for Argentinos was swiftly cancelled out by Valentin Viola, but Morales had other ideas.

The host had Sergio Escudero sent off in the dying seconds but there was no time for Racing to find an equaliser.

Finally, early goals from Diego Braghieri and Mariano Pavone earned Lanus a 2-0 triumph over Banfield, Facundo Ferreira's late effort proving scant consolation for the second-bottom visitor.

Boca appeared to have lost its grip on top spot as Dario Gandin put Atletico ahead from the spot five minutes into stoppage time, but there was still time for Nicolas Blandi to equalise.

Pablo Mouche had put Boca ahead after 31 minutes, only for Fabricio Fontanini to equalise on the hour.

Newell's was also forced to come from behind as Maximiliano Laso gave the host the lead in the 16th minute.

Victor Figueroa levelled three minutes later and Pablo Perez scored the winner 15 minutes from time.

All Boys could have pulled within two points of the leaders with a win over San Lorenzo but it was held to a goalless draw.

Racing Club put some distance between itself and the bottom sides with a 2-0 win over Estudiantes.

Lucas Aveldano opened the scoring in the 39th minute and, after Rodrigo Brana was sent off for the visitor four minutes from the end, substitute Giovanni Moreno added a second in the dying moments.

In the day's other game, Cesar Carranza's seventh-minute goal gave Lanus a 1-0 win at Godoy Cruz.

The Uruguayan striker helped Boca edge a tough game at La Bombonera but Union will still fancy its chances in the return leg having bagged an away goal.

Juan Roman Riquelme put Boca ahead in the 24th minute, after a Dario Cvitanich assist, but Sebastian Jaime equalised at the 72nd.

In the last minute of the match, Silva headed a Pablo Mouche cross into the back of the net to give the Boca fans something to celebrate.

In injury time, Union Espanola defender Diego Scotti was sent off after a tough challenge on Riquelme and he will miss the return match next Wednesday.

"The first 90 minutes are ours. It is a minor difference, but valuable," Boca coach Julio Falcioni told reporters at the stadium.

"Union Espanola will have to go for the win, but so will we. We should not be confident on the advantage we've taken."

Brazilian giant Vasco da Gama beat Argentina's Lanus 2-1 in Rio de Janeiro.

In the 26th minute, Alecsandro finished an Eder Luis cross to open the scoring for the Brazilian side.

Three minutes before the half-time whistle, Diego Souza netted a superb goal to double the advantage.

However, in the 62nd minute, Diego Valeri crossed the ball, Vasco defender Fagner failed to clear and Mario Regueiro reduced the deficit.

Finally in Ecuador, host Emelec and Corinthians played out a goalless draw.

Corinthians forward Jorge Henrique was sent off seven minutes into the second-half and will miss the second leg.

Santiago Silva got the only goal in the 36th minute as Boca saw off Colon Santa Fe, with Moreno y Fabianesi's late dismissal capping a bad day for the visitors.

Newell's Old Boys needed a last-minute goal from Martin Tonso to earn a 1-1 home draw against All Boys, who had led through Mauro Matos' fifth minute effort.

The visitor had Juan Rodriguez dismissed 11 minutes into the second half, although the numbers were evened up five minutes from time when substitute Guillermo Ortiz also saw red.

Independiente climbed into the top half with a 2-0 win over Banfield.

However, the home side left it late before seeing off its second-from-bottom opponent, with Osmar Ferreyra and Ernesto Farias netting in the last 19 minutes.

Arsenal took the lead in the 10th minute as defender Clemente Rodriguez converted a Nicolas Aguirre cross from the left into his own net.

Pablo Mouche equalised 18 minutes later with a right-foot strike before Pablo Ledesma gave Boca the win in the 68th minute.

It gave six-time Libertadores winners Boca their first win from three group games.

Mouche told Fox Sports: "This is a key victory for us. It was a must-win game for us.

"We had the necessary attitude to overcome going a goal down."

Group leaders Fluminense of Brazil beat Venezuela's Zamora 1-0 to make it three wins out of three.

Anderson netted the match's only goal in the 57th minute with a shot from outside the area.

The defender told Globoesporte.com: "It is too hard when all 11 players of the other team play behind the ball.

"I'm not a hero at all. Maybe the team might be called a hero. A 1-0 score is great in this kind of game."

In Asuncion, hosts Libertad played out a 1-1 draw with Brazil's Vasco da Gama, who took the lead thanks to a 16th-minute header from Diego Souza.

Souza elbowed an opponent and was sent off seven minutes after the interval, allowing Libertad to level in the 70th minute through Jose Nunez.

Libertad also ended the game with 10 men as Nunez tackled Rodolfo and was shown a second yellow card.

Vasco defender Dede told Globo TV: "We lost two points. This is not what we were looking for. It was a good chance for us."

Finally in Mexico, Cruz Azul and Corinthians played out a goalless draw.

Cruz Azul lead Group Six on seven points, two ahead of Corinthians.

Boca is also among the favourites to take the Copa Libertadores, which it won four times between 2000 and 2007.

In short, the club that helped made Maradona famous is back on top and Falcioni is the toast of the Argentine capital.

Uhhh, not quite.

Falcioni is teetering on the edge of being fired - or being forced to resign - after a locker room run-in with team captain Juan Roman Riquelme this week after a scoreless draw at Venezuela club Zamora in the Copa Libertadores.

The next chapter of the saga comes on Sunday when Boca plays at Union Santa Fe in a league game.

Falcioni has brought a defensive, cautious style to Boca, whose rabid fans view the club as South America's version of Barcelona or Real Madrid - with one-tenth the payroll and little of the glitz.

Falcioni has also returned stability. When he was hired in December 2010, he was Boca's fifth coach in a year after Claudio Borghi, Alfio Basile, Abel Alves and Roberto Pompei.

"Boca is solid," said club forward Santiago Silva, who joined recently from Italian club Fiorentina.

"I like how the team plays. You can't question a team that has gone 30 matches without losing."

At Boca Juniors, the fans can - and do.

It's a reminder of Vicente Del Bosque, who coached Real Madrid to two league titles and two UEFA Champions League titles in four years, and then left in 2003 when Real Madrid refused to renew his contract.

The dressing room confrontation in Venezuela seems to have undermined Falcioni, opening an avenue for players who were unhappy with his game tactics to complain.

Riquelme, a favourite of Boca fans, is widely reported to have a frosty relationship with Falcioni. An artistic but temperamental midfielder, Riquelme has had his own problems getting along with team-mates including retired Boca forward Martin Palermo.

According to various versions, Falcioni became upset in Venezuela when he sensed that forward Dario Cvitanich was not following his directives but rather the on-pitch directions of Riquelme.

Angry at Riquelme, Falcioni reportedly told him after the match: "When you're a coach, your team can play the way you want. But here I make the decisions."

In the two days following, Falcioni offered to step aside, then apologised to the team and personally to Riquelme, Cvitanich and several other key players.

"Falcioni asks for forgiveness and now the wait to see if calm returns," Argentina newspaper Clarin wrote in a Friday headline.

Club president Daniel Angelici termed it just "a misunderstanding," though sports talk shows in Argentina say it goes much deeper, with many fans suggesting Falcioni could be gone in days.

"It will not be easy to get out of this," club vice president Juan Carlos Crespi said in an interview. "But with the goodwill of everyone, it can be overcome."

Maybe only as long as Boca keeps winning.

Boca took the lead through Walter Erviti five minutes before the break, but just seconds into the second period, Guillermo Burdisso had brought the host level and it then led through Mauro Obolo's 54th minute strike.

Cristian Chavez rescued a draw for Boca 20 minutes from time.

Federico Higuain struck in the 46th minute to give Colon Santa Fe a 1-0 win away to Godoy Cruz, moving them up to fourth place, level on points with third-placed Lanus.

Needing just a point to be sure of finishing top, Boca put the league's bottom side to the sword to take the title with two games to spare.

Cvitanich put it ahead in the 11th minute after a scramble in the Banfield goalmouth.

His decisive strike into the bottom left corner from six yards was the fourth attempt on goal in the space of seconds.

Cvitanich put Boca 2-0 clear a minute before half-time when his volley from 12 yards took a helpful deflection to go just out of reach of Banfield goalkeeper Cristian Lucchetti, finding the bottom right corner.

It was 3-0 inside two minutes of the second half as Diego Rivero scored the outstanding goal of the game, a 30-yard drive into the top left corner.

Victory lifts Boca 11 points clear of second-placed Racing Club with two games remaining.

Tigre was the only team who could theoretically catch Boca heading into the weekend, as it trailed the leader by nine points with three games to play. But Boca's win takes it 12 clear of Tigre, ending that remote chance.

Towards the bottom of the table, Independiente and Newell's Old Boys battled out a 1-1 draw, with Pablo Perez putting visitor Newell's ahead after 18 minutes and Martin Benitez levelling in the 51st minute.

Godoy Cruz came from behind with 10 men to draw 1-1 away to Belgrano Cordoba.

Nicolas Olmedo was sent off after 24 minutes for Godoy Cruz, and it fell behind in the 55th minute when Cesar Manzanelli netted, but Ruben Ramirez managed an equaliser two minutes later.

Blandi struck in the 14th and 62nd minutes for Julio Cesar Falcioni`s men, who are six points clear at the top of the table.

A 3-1 win over Argentinos Juniors allowed Atletico Rafaela to stay in touching distance in second.

Diego Gandin got Argentinos going with a sixth-minute penalty and Federico Gonzalez doubled the lead in the 20th minute.

It was three before the break thanks to Oscar Carniello and it looked as though the goals would continue to flow when Juniors had Emilio Hernandez sent off before the break.

But Rafaela pulled a goal back through Gustavo Oberman and kept the scoreline respectable.

Velez Sarsfield moved into third place on the table with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Estudiantes.

David Ramirez got the goal after just the seventh minute, with the side then holding out to secure a sixth win of the campaign.

Adrian Gonzalez scored the only goal of the game 15 minutes from time as Arsenal Sarandi beat San Lorenzo 1-0.

Boca defeated Tigre 1-0 on the weekend, and on Monday the headline in the daily La Nacion asked: "Who can stop Boca?"

Responsible for the turnaround is coach Julio Cesar Falcioni, who took over 10 months ago and has met the expectations of some of football's most demanding fans.

When Falcioni took charge, Boca had just completed the 2010 Apertura season with just 25 points from 19 matches.

A year later in the 2011 Apertura season, Boca has 24 points in just 10 matches.

The 55-year-old Falcioni seems to have a permanent frown, a contrast to the boyish shock of brown hair that he's often brushing off his forehead.

He won the 2009 Apertura title with Banfield, the first Argentine league title in the modest club's 113-year history.

This season, Banfield is last.

Falcioni has brought stability to Boca, after Claudio Borghi who was there for only seven months before stepping down and eventually taking over Chile's national team. Prior to Borghi, Boca had four coaches in four months - and not much success.

The chaos took a toll. The Buenos Aires club was a dominant force in South America between 2000 and 2008, when it won four Copa Libertadores titles in 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2007.

Boca has also won the Argentine league title 23 times, 10 fewer than arch-rival River Plate.

"Fans are happier now than they have been in a long time," Boca's playmaking midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme said.

Riquelme is another reason why.

The former Barcelona player is going through a revival. After being shunned by the national team under then-coach Diego Maradona, Riquelme is in a position to be a key player on the squad of new coach Alejandro Sabella.

A left knee injury is likely to keep him out of upcoming qualifiers against Chile and Venezuela, but a role seems almost certain.

"Roman is always capable of being called up," Falcioni said.

Boca has also benefited from the retirement of striker Martin Palermo. A record goalscorer with the club, Palermo was largely an aerial threat. Without him, Boca is keeping more possession and passing the ball on the ground.

Boca is also better at the back, with only two goals allowed in 10 matches.

The Xeneizes - a nickname linked to the club's founding by Italian immigrants - have a five-point lead over second-place Rafaela after 10 rounds.

Boca faces Rafaela in the 13th round and has tough matches remaining with Racing Club, Colon and Belgrano. All three are within striking distance of Boca.

"We are only thinking about ourselves," Falcioni said. "We are not looking at what the others (teams) do, or don't do."

Clemente Rodriguez's goal after 17 minutes was all that separated the two sides, while Estudiantes finished the match with 10 men following the last-minute dismissal of Matias Sanchez.

The win gives Boca breathing space over nearest challenger, Racing Club.

Tigre climbed to fifth with a 1-0 win at Argentinos Juniors, courtesy of a Carlos Luna goal 10 minutes into the second half.

Pablo Barzola was sent off for Argentinos 19 minutes from time.

A late goal from Armando Cooper earned Godoy Cruz a 1-1 draw against Union Santa Fe.

The visiting side led through a 63rd-minute goal from Rodrigo Erramuspe until Cooper's equaliser seven minutes from time.

Having drawn its opener 0-0 against Olimpo, Boca wasted no time getting on the scoresheet this time as Walter Lucas Viatri netted within a minute.

He added a second with 11 minutes to play before a late surge yielded goals from Juan Roman Riquelme and Nicolas Colazo.

Velez Sarsfield also recorded a first win of the campaign at the second attempt, a 3-0 win over Banfield.

Santiago Silva got the ball rolling with a 23rd-minute penalty before Fernando Ortiz (49) and Juan Manuel Martinez (82) secured the points.

Arsenal Sarandi defeated Atletico Rafaela 3-1, with Luciano Leguizamon bagging a brace.

Mauro Obolo scored Sarandi's other goal, with Alexis Castro claiming Rafaela's.

Jhersson Cordoba was sent off for the losing side.

In the remaining fixture San Lorenzo saw off Estudiantes 2-0.

Also on Sunday, Lanus defeated San Lorenzo 1-0, Tigre drew 1-1 with Racing Club and Newell's Old Boys drew 0-0 with Estudiantes.

Lanus picked up the victory after an own-goal by San Lorenzo's Gonzalo Bazan.

In other weekend matches, Atletico Rafaela defeated Banfield 2-0, Union and Argentinos Junior drew 1-1, All Boys and Belgrano drew 1-1, Colon defeated Arsenal 2-1, and Velez and Godoy Cruz drew 1-1.

The Gunners had shown little sign of missing captain Cesc Fabregas, who was not included as speculation over his future continues, with £11 million Ivory Coast forward Gervinho impressing to set up Robin van Persie for the opening goal on 27 minutes, before Aaron Ramsey doubled the lead at the start of the second half.

However, after several changes, the Gunners once again hit the self-destruct button at the back as mistakes from Sebastien Squillaci and Johan Djourou were punished when the Argentinian side struck twice in four minutes through Lucas Viatri and Pablo Mouche.

Wenger rejected suggestions the defensive alarm bells should start ringing again, although admitted there is still plenty of room for improvement ahead of the opening Premier League game at Newcastle.

"You never want to concede goals, but overall I do not give too much importance to that," Wenger told a post-match news conference.

"What is important for us it to find a collective rhythm. When we could we managed to play at a good pace for 60 minutes, after it was much more difficult."

Wenger added: "Gervinho is a good addition to our squad.

"He is very interesting because he gives us options on both sides and through the middle, and can integrate well with our team.

"We have some improvements to make in some areas, especially the way we win the ball back, on set-pieces we were not convincing today, but overall it was quite positive."

On Friday Wenger had challenged Fabregas and contract rebel Samir Nasri to show their commitment to the Arsenal cause.

"If Fabregas is committed to this club and wants to stay, no money will get him out of here," the Arsenal manager added.

"We are not in a position where we need to sell our players. We are not looking after money.

"He cares about this club and that's why I hope he can keep him."

Wenger continued: "Nasri needs to be committed as well.

"On the sporting side, he is an important player. We have to deal with the situation one way or another. In the next 10 days we have to be clear on that front."

Wenger insists Arsenal is far from a club "in crisis".

"Let's be relaxed," he said, "If you want to start a crisis before the start of the season I can understand that, but I don't see the need."

The Arsenal manager also confirmed striker Nicklas Bendtner and Emmanuel Eboue, who was a second-half substitute on Saturday, are both on the verge of moves away, although would not confirm the reported destinations of Sporting Lisbon and Galatasaray.

Boca Juniors manager Julio Cesar Falcioni was happy with his side's fightback.

"We tried to get them to make a mistake and took advantage of when we were finding some spaces, which we could profit from, because before that, Arsenal had played very well," he said.

"We played against one of the greatest teams in the world and gave a great account of ourselves."

Arsenal faces New York Red Bulls on Sunday, with Thierry Henry's side having beaten Paris St Germain 1-0 earlier on Saturray.

Monzon, 24, who won an Olympic gold medal at the Beijing Games in 2008 and has since gone on to earn seven senior caps for his country, has signed a four-year deal with the Ligue 1 side.

Coach Eric Roy just kept Nice in Ligue 1 last season as it finished 17th and welcomed the new signing, saying: "We were looking for a specialist at left-back for a while, Monzon will bring a lot."

Middlesbrough midfielder Didier Digard is also expected to sign for the club after an agreement was reached in principle between the two sides.

The 24-year-old spent last season on loan at the Stade Municipal du Ray and arrived in Nice on Monday ahead of signing a three-year contract in the next 24 hours.

Paris St Germain and Boca Juniors will also join the Gunners in the two-day tournament on July 30-31.

Henry, 33, is in his first full season with the MLS club after joining last northern summer from Barcelona.

Although he left for Barca in 2007, Henry remains close to Arsenal, where he is the club's all-time top scorer, and trained with the Gunners this northern winter during the MLS off-season.

Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis said: "New York Red Bulls, Boca Juniors and Paris Saint-Germain are three clubs with great players and huge followings, and they are sure to make Emirates Cup 2011 a hugely exciting weekend of football.

"Also, I'm sure all Arsenal fans will be looking forward to welcoming back Thierry Henry - a true Arsenal legend."

The Boca midfielder missed training on Tuesday with an abdominal muscle pull, which the club said would keep him out for two matches.

This means he will miss this weekend's game against Huracan and the next match against Argentinos Juniors.

The 32-year-old former Barcelona star had surgery a year ago on his left knee and has had various injuries since then, which have kept him from playing regularly for Boca.

Boca has only 11 points this season and is lodged near the bottom of the standings, far behind league leader River Plate with 19.

Boca is lodged in 18th-place in the 20-team league, has only four points from six matches and has scored only two goals in the Clausura tournament.

Palermo declined to blame new coach Julio Cesar Falcioni, who took over three months ago and helped make the club the pre-season title favorite.

"I share completely the worry of the fans," Palermo said. "It's not just them. It touches me and the team. In my years with the club, this is the worst moment. We've hit rock bottom."

Fans shouted and jeered players after Sunday's 2-0 loss to Olimpo in Boca's La Bombonera stadium. Palermo was on the receiving end of insults and taunts as he left the field.

"Everyone has a limit and after that they explode," Palermo said. "The fans exploded. I've never seen this kind of anger from the fans since I have been at Boca. We changed players, coaches and playing schemes - and the fans still have no results."

Falcioni is the fifth coach in just over a year following Claudio Borghi, Alfio Basile, Abel Alves and Roberto Pompei.

"We're not looking to blame the coaches," Palermo said. "Firing Falcioni is not the solution because we have had five coaches and nothing has changed."

Boca Juniors was the dominant club in South America between 2000 and 2008, winning four Copa Libertadores titles, but Boca - like Buenos Aires rival River Plate - has not won a league title since 2008.

Riquelme said his right ankle was healing slowly since he sprained it during last weekend's stunning 4-1 loss against Godoy Cruz in its opening game of the Clausura.

Riquelme had surgery on his left knee in May 2010, played only a handful of games, then missed the final four games of the Apertura with Achilles' tendinitis.

"It has been a long time since I've been healthy," said Riquelme, who played with Barcelona and Villarreal in Spain before returning to Boca in 2007.

Riquelme tried to downplay the injury and said "it's a long season", suggesting he hoped to return for a match in 10 days against All Boys.

The 54-year-old Falcioni had stepped down several days ago as the coach at Banfield, clearing the way to join Boca.

One of Argentina's most popular clubs, Boca has struggled in recent seasons. Boca finished with 25 points in the just-completed Apertura season, 20 fewer than champion Estudiantes.

Falcioni, who played professionally as a goalkeeper, coached Banfield to the 2009 Apertura title. He has also coached Velez Sarsfield, Olimpo, Independiente, Colon and Gimnasia y Esgrima.

Diego Maradona, who starred for Boca as a player, lobbied for the job and has been critical of Falcioni.

Boca has been through a string of coaches recently. In May, Borghi became Boca's fourth coach in four months, following Alfio Basile, Abel Alves and Roberto Pompei, who also filled in after Borghi departed.

Falcioni tried to keep expectations modest, knowing the club's demanding fan base will be immediately looking for titles.

"We can't promise more than hard work, responsibility and discipline," Falcioni said. "Surely with the help and dedication of the players, we'll achieve important goals."

Boca Juniors was the dominant club in South America between 2000 and 2008, winning four Copa Libertadores titles, but Boca - like River Plate - has not won a league title since 2008.

Maradona said on Monday that 'I say to the people at Boca that I will be on the bench there one day'.

Falcioni's representative, Sergio Greco, said on Saturday that his client had given up his job as coach of Banfield and was ready to take over Boca when the Clausura season starts early next year.

Maradona, 50, has been out of work since he was dropped after the World Cup as Argentina's national team coach. Since then he has campaigned unsuccessfully for a return to the national team, or with a club.

Gonzalo Castillejos fired Lanus into a 2-0 lead with a brace inside 15 minutes, and although Argentinos pulled one back through Mauricio Caranta's own goal, the visitors held on for the points.

Newell's Old Boys slipped to a 1-0 defeat at home to Olimpo, Cristian Villanueva with the only goal of the contest after 39 minutes. The hosts ended the game with 10 men after Marcelo Estigarribia saw red in stoppage time.

Quilmes were 1-0 winners over San Lorenzo courtesy of a 17th-minute Juan Morales strike, while the game between Banfield and Boca Juniors ended goalless.

Borghi's departure adds to the chaos at Boca Juniors. When Borghi was hired in May, he became Boca's fourth coach in four months following Alfio Basile, Abel Alves and Roberto Pompei. The favourite to replace Borghi is reported to be Banfield coach Julio Cesar Falconi.

Borghi, who led Argentinos Juniors to the Clausura title in May, is a top candidate for the Chile national team job being vacated by Argentine Marcelo Bielsa.

Riquelme cut training short on Friday, and it was not clear on Saturday if he would be ready to play.

Riquelme has been plagued by injuries and came back only a week ago after a six-month layoff following surgery on his left knee.

Argentina's two most popular clubs are in deep trouble entering the showdown.

River Plate is facing relegation and coach Angel Cappa was fired earlier in the week after the club's seventh straight match without a victory.

Boca coach Claudio Borghi is also under threat.

"If the coach (Borghi) doesn't change, we will change the coach," Boca vice-president Juan Carlos Crespi said in a radio interview on Friday.

"If he doesn't change to another style of play and start winning, in December we'll change coaches."

River has 18 points and Boca has 17, far behind leader Estudiantes with 30.

River Plate's Angel Cappa was fired on Monday after the side's seventh straight winless match. Over at Boca Juniors, its struggling coach Claudio Borghi, as Cappa was being sacked, hinted that he might not be around for the match.

Boca vice president Jose Beraldi calmed the waters on Tuesday, saying Borghi would coach what is called the "superclasico," and would be around until season's end.

Following several miserable seasons, fans of both clubs are ready for anything in the match next Wednesday morning (AEDT) at River's Monumental stadium.

"I have no idea if I'm going to be coach against River," Borghi said after getting news Monday that Cappa was out. "In a week a lot of things can happen, which is what happened to Angel at River."

Beraldi tried to sound reassuring: "He (Borghi) will coach the superclasico and he'll be around until the end of the year."

Argentina's two most famous clubs have been running a coaching carousel.

Cappa is the third coach to be fired in 13 months at River Plate.

It's even worse at Boca. Borghi was the fourth coach in four months when he was hired six months ago following Alfio Basile, Abel Alves and Roberto Pompei.

If one club is in worse shape it is probably River Plate.

River is confronting financial problems, hasn't won a league title since 2008 and is facing the drop.

Relegation is unthinkable for a club that's as important in Argentina as Barcelona is in Spain or Manchester Untied in England. Only three clubs have never endured that fate - Boca Juniors, Independiente and River. It may soon be two.

In Argentina, relegation is calculated on results over three seasons and River finds itself in the drop zone. If things stay as they are, the club known as the Millionaires faces a two-game playoff to stay up against a second-division club. A few more losses and River faces the chance of a direct drop without any chance at a playoff.

Not only have these two Buenos Aires clubs failed to win titles, they have not even been competitive. River has 18 points from 13 matches and Boca has 17 - far behind leaders Estudiantes with 30. Neither is good enough to qualify for South America's prestigious club championship - the Copa Libertadores - much less win it.

River's youth coach Juan Jose Lopez took training on Tuesday as the short-term replacement.

The long term replacements are reported to be former Independiente coach Americo Gallego and Marcelo Bielsa, who quit his job as Chile coach last week. Former Argentina national team coach Jose Pekerman is also being mentioned.

The famous Buenos Aires club faces Argentinos Juniors this weekend. Boca has only 17 points in 12 matches and has struggled without Riquelme, regarded by some as the most creative midfielder in Argentine football.

Riquelme's return comes as coach Claudio Borghi is being mentioned as a candidate to succeed Marcelo Bielsa - also an Argentine - as the national team coach in Chile.

"He is different from anybody else," Borghi said of Riquelme. "He can help us with some things, but it would be unfair to ask him to fix everything."

The match will be a warm-up for Riquelme, giving him 10 days to get ready for the 16 November showdown against River Plate. It's also a chance to impress new Argentina coach Sergio Batista, who has said he would like Riquelme to return to the national side.

Riquelme was largely overlooked under the 21-month reign of Diego Maradona.

"I love him as a player," Batista said. "He brings a lot. He has experience, technical ability, talent and character."

Despite the return of Riquelme, Borghi is suddenly facing distractions with his name being mentioned in a move to Chile, where he was a popular coach with Colo Colo.

"I'm the coach of Boca until the results or the club directors say differently," Borghi said. "I hope I am here for a long time.

"I'm proud to be mentioned as a replacement for Bielsa," he added. "If someone shows an official interest, I will speak with them out of courtesy. But I think it will be difficult for anything to happen."

The election on Thursday of Spanish businessman Jorge Segovia as the new president of the country's football federation triggered Bielsa's resignation. He had supported incumbent Harold Mayne-Nicholls, who hired him.

Riquelme said he expected to be on the field for this weekend's match against defending champion Argentinos Juniors. Riquelme is a key playmaker and Boca has struggled without him.

Boca is lodged in the middle of the standings with 17 points from 12 matches, far behind leader Estudiantes with 27 points.

The game is a prelude to the most important match of the season in Argentina - Boca Juniors vs. River Plate. That game is set for 16 November.

"We want to give our fans a gift and later think about the classico," Riquelme said.

Riquelme was largely overlooked for the national team during the reign of Diego Maradona. But Sergio Batista, who was confirmed on Tuesday as Maradona's replacement, said he would consider Riquelme once he returns to Boca.

"I love him as a player," Batista said. "He brings a lot. He has experience, technical ability, talent and character."

The home side did climb to seventh in the standings, but was unable to find the crucial goal against an opponent which started the game bottom of the league.

In the day's other game, Boca Juniors grabbed a late winner to beat Tigre 2-1 on the road.

Denis Straqualursi cancelled out a 24th-minute opener from Matias Gimenez eight minutes before the interval, but substitute Cristian Chaavez secured all three points for the visiting side on 85 minutes.

Borghi, who was appointed in May, is reported to have offered his resignation after the 2-1 loss at home to Lanus but was asked to reconsider by the Boca board.

"The decision has not been taken, I'm going to listen to all the different points of view," Borghi said in an interview with the TyC Sports channel on Monday, admitting it had been a "very bad campaign".

"He's a good man, him and his coaching staff. He claimed he couldn't find a way to turn things round," Boca president Jorge Amor Ameal told Fox Sports.

"I'm an optimist. He's a person who works hard and we are going for continuity."

The 19-year-old, who is considered one of the most promising central defenders in his homeland, has signed a five-year contract with the Serie A club.

Munoz was strongly linked with a move to Fiorentina last year, with La Viola reportedly shelling out eight million euros ($11.48 million) as a down payment, before pulling out of the deal after doubts surfaced over his fitness following a serious knee injury which sidelined the defender for six months.

Real Madrid also had an option to buy Munoz, but that expired at the end of last month and Palermo immediately moved in.

Munoz made his first-team debut in September 2008, aged just 17.

The 36-year-old trained on Wednesday with the club, which did not release details of the contract.

Palermo was a member of Argentina's squad at this summer's World Cup in South Africa, scoring a goal in the 2-0 victory over Greece in the group stage. He is the top scorer in Boca Juniors' history, hitting 222 goals.

Juan Roman Riquelme, the club's other leading player, has yet to sign a new contract with the Buenos Aires side.

But Phoenix skipper Andrew Durante welcomes the timely inquisition.

"It's our last build-up match ahead of the A-League which begins in a couple of weeks and is a good chance to see where we are," Durante said.

"We are very excited to be playing such a quality team, but the main thing for the players is that we need to make sure we play well, we do what we have been working on in training and try not to get caught up in all the hype.

"We want to put on a good show for the crowd but first and foremost we want to put in a good solid performance, each and every player."

He said Boca retained possession well and scrapped hard to get it back.

"I'm sure they are going to have a lot of flair and tricks and flicks and stuff like that," he said.

Durante, who played every game last season, was a rock in the middle of the Phoenix defence as it launched its mid-season run into the playoffs.

Such was his impact, the Australian earned a Socceroos call-up and won the club's player of the year award ahead of crowd favourite Paul Ifill.

He told NZPA he was looking to continue where he left off.

"I've played a couple of trial games now, it's still early and I'm still trying to get to peak fitness, but I am happy with where I am at this stage."

The dangers posed by Boca attackers such as Marcelo Canete, who scored a brilliant individual goal in the 1-0 win over Melbourne Victory last Friday and had another screamer tipped over the bar, and Nicolas Blando could not be underestimated.

The Phoenix lost powerful central defender Jon McKain to Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr in the off-season but there is still a familiar look to the back four of this season.

"We've got a steady back four - Ben Sigmund who's been known to do his job very well, we got Troy Hearfield on the right and Tony Lochhead on the left," Durante said.

"Tony won't be playing on Friday but we have Manny Muscat who will play left back and Mark Paston, who is a great keeper.

"And I think the whole team as a defensive unit is very good and we'll need that on Friday night."

Canete, who scored a marvellous solo goal in the glamour Argentine club's 1-0 win over Melbourne Victory, suffered a bloody nose when he collided with the referee's elbow in the first half.

He needed treatment several times before he could play on.

But Boca Juniors coach Claudio Borghi said on Monday that Canete, 20, was all right.

"He had a badly bleeding nose but he's not injured," Borghi told a press conference through an interpreter.

The game against Melbourne had at times been physical.

Both teams became increasingly frustrated as the match wore on, leading to clashes which saw referee Strebre Delovski hand out three yellow cards to each side.

Outlining what he expected from Phoenix former Argentine international Borghi said: "From what I have seen in the World Cup ... your players are physically bigger than our players and that's the way they will play.

"We had a problem with the referee who elbowed our player, so I hope that doesn't happen (on Friday).

"The referee should have got a yellow card," he joked, adding: "It was an accident."

Phoenix assistant coach Luciano Trani said the game against Boca Juniors was a chance for the club's preparations to be scrutinised ahead of the new A-League season next month.

"There are still a few things we need to put into the jigsaw puzzle about getting key players fit.

"This is the only genuine friendly game before the season kicks off next month."

Of the club's All Whites, left-back Tony Lochhead was probably out of the equation because of a slight groin injury.

Tim Brown, who sat out the World Cup recovering from shoulder surgery, and had played just 15 minutes in the last practice match, would get a longer run on Friday as would Leo Bertos, who had yet to feature in any pre-season outings.

Trani indicated centre-back Ben Sigmund and World Cup hero Mark Paston would also play.

Borghi, who took over at Boca in June, says negotiations are underway to re-sign Riquelme, who is currently out of contract after spending the last three years at the Buenos Aires-based club.

"The club directors are negotiating with him," the coach told Argentinian sports paper Ole from Australia, where the club is currently on a pre-season tour.

"I would like to be able to enjoy watching him play in my team.

"If you can make me enjoy myself, I will put you in the team every week."

Riquelme has been linked with Everton and Tottenham Hotspur in recent years, while there has been reported interest from West Ham United and Brazilian club Flamengo this northern summer in the former Argentina number 10.

However, the 31-year-old says his preferred choice is to remain at Boca and believes an agreement could have been reached a long time ago.

"I'm a Boca fan and I'll die a Boca fan - I want to stay at Boca," the former Villarreal playmaker told Fox Sports.

"The only thing I am asking for is a contract for four years. If they had wanted to, they could have sorted this out two months ago."

Riquelme has also attracted interested from Racing Club, but the player, who has refused to turn out for Argentina under Diego Maradona, says he would not sign for any other club in his homeland.

"I am grateful for their interest," he said.

"I have a very good relationship with (Racing coach) Miguel (Russo), but I won't play with another shirt in Argentina."

That leaves the route clear for Boca and Borghi believes an agreement will be reached soon.

"Since I took over at Boca, the only time I have spoken to Roman was at Pilar (where the club have a training facility), but I am confident everything can be sorted out soon," he said.

"I have just confirmed it. Riquelme will stay in Boca,” Borghi announced on Radio 10, a local radio station in Argentina.

Boca Juniors is now set to sign Riquleme on a new four-year contract, and Boca’s management is now waiting for his agent, Daniel Bolotnicoff, to return back to Argentina to finalise the deal.

Borghi, 45, who was part of the Argentina’s 1986 World Cup winning squad, also added that he hopes to add a few more reinforcements before the Boca Juniors departs the tour of Australia and New Zealand on Sunday.

Borghi, hired as Boca’s head coach in June from Argentino Juniors, revealed that Boca’s club management was still negotiating with his former club’s defensive stalwart, Matias Caruzzo.

"The negotiation for Matias (Caruzzo) is complicated as there is valuation differences between Boca and Argentinos ," Borghi admitted, stressing that Boca will make one last attempt in the next few hours to complete the transfer so that the issue is concluded before the team makes the trip to Australasia.

"This will be the last weekend to seal Caruzzo’s transfer. I will wait till today, so it's either a yes or no, but I hope that the deal will be concluded," said Borghi.

However, Borghi has declared that he is happy with the new-look Boca squad, having beefed up the line-up with four new recruits.

"We think that we have adequate reinforcements to make a strong title challenge," Borghi said, referring to the Boca’s latest additions of goalkeeper Cristian Lucchetti (from Atlético Banfield), Argentinean international centre-back Juan Manuel Insaurralde (Newell’s Old Boys), defender Christian Cellay (Estudiantes de La Plata) and left-sided midfielder Damián Escudero – who returns to the Argentinean league after his stint with Spanish club, Villarreal.

Boca has also retained the crucial services of Boca record goal scorer, Martin Palermo, as well as club flag bearer, Sebastián Battaglia, who has signed a new contract for another three years to stay at La Bombonera.

Club captain and midfield lynchpin, Sebastián Battaglia, is one of the key player for Boca Juniors, having won more titles in the history of Boca with 16 titles each – a record that he shares with another club legend, Guillermo Barros Schelotto – and immediately declared Boca’s title aspirations for the coming season.

"I am staying with Boca. I have signed for three years and my aim is reclaim our rightful position as the most successful club," said Battaglia. "We have already started the pre-season training in Pilar with our new coach Claudio Borghi, and we are going to fight to win another championship because the goal is to make our return to the Copa Libertadores, a tournament that means a lot to Boca."

SBS is giving you the chance to WIN a Boca Juniors shirt signed by Juan Roman Riquelme and double passes for the game aganst Melbourne Victory on Friday, July 16 2010. For details on how to enter, visit our Facebook page, and become a fan.

The Serie A club has had its eye on Paletta for some time but the Boca Juniors player's injury problems had prevented any deal being done.

However, the 24-year-old has now completed his move and will be unveiled on Thursday, when further details of the transfer will be revealed.

Paletta spent a season at Liverpool but only made three Premier League appearances, although he did score in the 4-3 League Cup victory over Reading, before returning to Argentina in 2007.

The New Zealand A-League club announced the match to The Dominion Post newspaper, believing the 23 July encounter in Wellington will be financially viable.

Club chief executive Tony Pignata said the match would be underwritten by a Singapore-based sports media company, making it a safe bet to host its second big overseas club in three years. In 2007 it staged a match against a Los Angeles Galaxy side which included England midfielder David Beckham.

Pignata said an undisclosed match fee plus a share of any profits left him comfortable with hosting one of South America's most famous teams.

"It's a good earner for the club," Pignata said.

"We will basically run the event for them, with marketing and booking the stadium, but they are underwriting the whole thing.

"Commercially it made sense. I've always maintained we'd only look at these sort of games if it was commercially viable, and it is."

Boca Juniors is scheduled to play Melbourne Victory in Melbourne earlier and ends a world tour against Liverpool in England.

The current side includes veteran Argentina midfielder Juan Roman Riquelme and striker Martin Palermo.

Its most famous former player is Argentina great Diego Maradona, the current national coach, who played two years for Boca in the early 1980s.

The match will be played at Etihad Stadium on Friday 16 July.

Victory's football manager Gary Cole said the club is delighted to have secured a fixture against one of the giants of world club football.

Boca has won 31 domestic titles, six continential titles and has an estimated 16 million fans in Argentina alone.

It counts among its former players, Argentina legend and current national team coach Diego Maradona, and current Manchester City and Argentina striker Carlos Tevez.

The Buenos Aires club's current star act is ex-Barcelona, Villarreal and Argentina playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme.

Boca's visit to Melbourne is part of a world pre-season tour that will take in matches in the United States, New Zealand and England.

Borghi led Argentinos Juniors to the Argentina Clausura title last weekend, and almost immediately was reported ready to sign with Boca. He finalised the deal on Thursday.

Alfio Basile resigned as coach in January and was replaced by Albel Alves. He stepped away after about a dozen matches then Roberto Pompei stepped in to complete the season.

Boca is Argentina's most popular club, followed by River Plate. Both clubs have struggled for the last few seasons with continual coaching changes and no trophies.

In a radio interview on La Red de Buenos Aires, Bonilla said Colon players during the match - and after he was sent off - shouted racial slurs at him including: "You're going back to Africa and starve" and "black piece of (expletive)."

Bonilla said he did not report the incidents to the Argentine Football Association or FIFA, and did not explain why.

Boca confirmed Alves' resignation on Friday. He is the third Boca coach in less than a year to leave the club.

Alves was the reserve-team coach when he took over in January after Alfio Basile quit following a loss to River Plate. Basile took over for Carlos Ischia, who left 10 months ago after Boca was knocked out of the final 16 of the Copa Libertadores.

Boca, which has 11 points from 13 games, lost three straight matches and like bitter rival River Plate is going through one of the worst seasons in its history.

Alves was reported to have had a confrontation with goalkeeper Javier Garcia before the loss to Colon when Alves told him he would not be playing in the match.

Martin Palermo, the club's all-time scoring leader, called the club's slump "the worst" in his years with Boca. He played for Boca in 1997-2000 and rejoined in 2004 after a stint in Spain.

Roberto Pompei, who coaches Boca's youth teams, is one of the candidates to take over for Monday's match against Arsenal at Boca's La Bombonera stadium.

Boca vice president Jose Beraldi said Alves would stay with the club.

"Without a doubt he will continue with the club," Beraldi said. "His entire coaching staff, not just him."

Referee Hector Baldassi called the game off at Boca's La Bombonera stadium. It was not immediately clear when the game would be rescheduled.

Boca has eight points in nine matches and River Plate is not much better off with 12 points. Though they are Argentina's best known clubs, both have struggled in recent seasons and failed to qualify for this year's Copa Libertadores championship.

Also, Chacarita Juniors won 3-0 away against Arsenal de Sarandi with two goals from Diego Morales.

After the draw with Boca, Estudiantes moved to 10 points, one behind Velez Sarsfield at the top of the Clausura and level with defending champion Banfield, which won 3-0 at home against Argentinos Juniors on Wednesday.

Chacarita was also one point off the top after winning at Arsenal, while Boca remained in mid-table, four points off the leader.

In other sixth round fixtures on Saturday, it's: Huracan vs. Velez Sarsfield, Independiente vs. Racing Club and Colon de Santa Fe vs. Rosario Central.

On Sunday, it's Lanus vs. Atletico Tucuman, San Lorenzo vs. Tigre, Argentinos Juniors vs. Godoy Cruz, Newell's Old Boys vs. Banfield and Gimnasia La Plata vs. River Plate.

Palermo scored from the penalty spot for Boca in the 25th minute after a handball in the box from Estudiantes defender Leandro Desabato.

Gonzalez equalized a minute into stoppage time after breaking clear of the defense and hitting a shot into the roof of the net with the outside of his boot.

Estudiantes was missing suspended playmaker Juan Sebastian Veron and top scorer Mauro Boselli, who was not allowed to play against Boca because half of his playing contract was owned by the Buenos Aires club.

Palermo hit his 218th goal for Boca to tie the late Cherro's all-time mark, but could not inspire a win for the team who have now drawn five of their seven matches during this campaign.

Boca led 3-1 at one stage thanks to goals from Luciano Monzon, Palermo - who had missed a penalty before his goal - and Osvaldo Gaitan.

Velez, whose point took them into a share of top spot, had earlier taken the lead through Víctor Zapata, and after shipping three goals they came back with three in 20 minutes. Santiago Silva scored after 62 and 82 minutes, sandwiching a goal from Juan Martínez.

Chilean midfielder Gary Medel had the final say for Boca, however, equalising in the 89th minute.

Co-leaders Colon and Godoy Cruz, who each have a game in hand on Velez, will have the chance to reassert themselves with midweek fixtures to come against Banfield and Lanus respectively.

Arsenal jumped three places to 16th place, with Javier Yacuzzi, Mauro Obolo and Sergio Sena scoring in a 3-2 victory over the still-winless Rosario Central.

The night's other match saw defender Eduardo Domínguez grab an 89th-minute leveller to earn a point for Huracan away to Racing, who had led since Claudio Bieler put them ahead after 16 minutes.