Belgrano's strikers' goal drought worries ahead of Apertura final v River | OneFootball

Belgrano suffered in La Paternal, drew 1-1 with Argentinos Juniors in regular time, and prevailed 4-3 on penalties to reach the first top-flight final in its history. El Pirata will face River on Sunday, May 24 at 3:30 p.m. at the Mario Alberto Kempes Stadium in Córdoba, in what will be the most history-laden match Argentine football has seen in a long time. But there is one striking detail about the Córdoba side’s path: the forwards scored very little, and it was the midfielders who took responsibility for the goals.

The numbers tell a particular story. Lucas Passerini, the leading scorer and reference point of Ricardo Zielinski’s team, did not score a single goal in the tournament. Meanwhile, youngster Lautaro Gutiérrez and Uvita Fernández each scored only two goals in the domestic championship. Altogether, the attacking line contributed just four goals in the entire competition.

The ones who made up for that drought were the midfielders. Lucas Zelarayán led the team’s scoring chart with four goals. Francisco González Metilli added three. Franco Vázquez had two. And with one each were Emiliano Rigoni, Adrián Sánchez, Julián Mavilla, and Ramiro Tulián. In total, El Pirata’s midfielders scored thirteen goals, nearly three times as many as the forwards.

The statistic is striking, but it did not make the team any less effective. Belgrano reached the first final in its 121-year history relying on the quality of its midfielders and a solid defensive structure that allowed it to compete at every stage. El Pirata did not need its forwards to get this far. Now, against River in Córdoba, the question is whether that will be enough to pull off the biggest upset in its history.

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