River Plate vs. Sanfrecce: Winners and Losers from 2015 FIFA Club World Cup
River Plate sealed passage to the 2015 FIFA Club World Cup final on Wednesday by beating Sanfrecce Hiroshima 1-0 in the first semi-final.
The pattern of the game was set early, as River Plate settled on the ball and Sanfrecce focused on counter-attacking. It was the latter who threatened in the first half. Only some fantastic goalkeeping by Marcelo Barovero kept the Argentinians in it by half-time.
But in the second period, River Plate upped the ante and found their reward, with Lucas Alario heading home after a scramble in the box following a free-kick.
Here, B/R picks its winners and losers from the game.
Winner: Marcelo Barovero, River Plate
1 of 5
The most pivotal and important performer on the pitch on Wednesday was Marcelo Barovero, who single-handedly kept River Plate in the game for 45 minutes.
He made three quality saves to keep the score level and his sheet clean, flinging himself left and right to tip good shots around the post. In the second half, things were quieter, but he still came up with a few clean catches to thwart a late comeback attempt.
Had it not been for his stellar play in the opening 45 minutes, River Plate could have been dead and buried.
Losers: Eder Alvarez Balanta and Jonatan Maidana, River Plate
2 of 5
Eder Alvarez Balanta and Jonatan Maidana’s efforts on Wednesday stuck out for all the wrong reasons.
They were crucified on the counter-attack a number of times as Sanfrecce flooded forward on the break, and although the midfield protection could have been better, they didn’t cover themselves in glory on an individual basis.
Both were rash, attempting to tackle high up and consequently leaving swathes of space for their opponents to hit. Balanta did make two key interventions, but it doesn’t make up for 90 minutes of struggle.
Winner: Yusuke Chajima, Sanfrecce
3 of 5
Yusuke Chajima was a constant thorn in River Plate’s side, darting forward with the ball at his feet, committing men and breaching the space in behind.
The diminutive winger continually surged forward and beat players one-on-one, creating chances for striker Yusuke Minagawa and testing goalkeeper Marcelo Barovero himself.
Fast, direct and positive in possession, River Plate endured a lot of issues in trying to deal with him.
Loser: Douglas, Sanfrecce
4 of 5
Sanfrecce’s crossing and advanced wing play was pretty poor all game long. The bad deliveries undid all the good dribbling work in the build-up.
The chief culprit in this area was Douglas, Sanfrecce’s No. 9, who found plenty of room to work with on the right flank, but could not deliver a cross to save his life. As Argentinian football writer Sam Kelly pointed out, he actually fell over at one point when attempting to send one in.
Others struggled too—Mihael Mikic actually crossed it in once when no Sanfrecce player was in the box, but four River Plate defenders were—but Douglas was a repeat offender.
Winner: Lucas Alario, River Plate
5 of 5
River Plate struggled to create anything of note for 60 minutes but eventually began to make up ground as the second half wore on. The game was settled by a goal from Lucas Alario, who ends up a winner in our books as a result.
The header was nothing special, though he was in the right place to capitalise when a stray ball fell into his zone after a poorly cleared free-kick. Earlier in the half, he had squared a ball into Rodrigo Mora’s path six yards out, but the forward proceeded to sky his effort over the bar with the goal gaping.
River offered little in terms of cutting attacking play on Wednesday, but the key moments of quality nearly all involved Alario.
