Defensa y Justicia see off Argentinos Jrs, now top of Zone A | OneFootball

Defensa y Justicia clinched a narrow victory over Argentinos Juniors in Florencio Varela as part of the twelfth round of the Liga Profesional’s Clausura Tournament.

From the start, both teams looked to impose their rhythm, though inaccuracies dominated the opening minutes. The visitors looked better with midfielder Nicolás Oroz and defender Leandro Lescano active in buildup, while the “Halcón” responded through the mobility of midfielder Aarón Molinas and the forward runs of Ezequiel Cannavo down the right.

Argentinos Juniors had the clearest chances with a high header from Lescano after a corner and a powerful left-footer from Hernán López that went just wide. In the 44th minute, Defensa y Justicia broke the deadlock after midfielder Kevin Gutiérrez attempted a through ball but Abiel Osorio was in an offside position, so VAR disallowed the goal.

Two minutes into the second half, after the injury to the “Bicho” goalkeeper Diego Rodríguez, who was replaced after the break by Gonzalo Payer, forward Juan Gutiérrez headed in to give Defensa y Justicia a 1–0 lead over Argentinos Juniors.

With this win, the “Halcón” climbed to first place in Zone B with 19 points, while Nicolás Diez’s side remain in ninth place with 15 points.

In the next round, Argentinos Juniors will host Newell’s on Friday at 9:15 p.m. Meanwhile, Defensa y Justicia will travel to Santa Fe to face Unión on Tuesday at 7:15 p.m.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.