Boca, take note: group D standings after Católica beat Barcelona | OneFootball

Boca keeping a close eye on the result. Universidad Católica’s win in Guayaquil completely shook up Group D. After the end of matchday three, an unusual mathematical scenario emerged: a three-way tie at the top with 6 points. However, due to CONMEBOL’s new regulations for this edition of the Libertadores, the standings are not determined by simple overall goal difference, which makes it necessary to keep a very close eye on the calculator.

To understand why the standings look different from the traditional format, you have to refer to article 2.4.2 of the CONMEBOL Club Manual. The governing body now gives priority to the “Olympic tiebreaker” (head-to-head) over overall goal difference.

Group D standings

Why is Católica top and Boca second?

With a tie between three teams (Boca, Universidad Católica, and Cruzeiro), a “mini-league” is created that only takes into account the results between them. This is where goals scored in the head-to-head matchups determine the provisional leader.

In the direct comparison between the three teams involved, all of them picked up 3 points and finished with a goal difference of zero in their matches against each other. The tie was broken by the third criterion: goals scored in the head-to-head matchups.

Now a crucial technical detail comes into play: the “no return” rule. The regulations state that once a criterion has been applied (in this case, goals scored in the mini-league), you cannot go back and review who beat whom. Since the Xeneize and Cruzeiro were tied with 2 goals scored each under that filter, the next overall criterion must be used: overall goal difference.

Boca won 2 and lost 1.

Thanks to the emphatic 3-0 win over Barcelona on matchday two, Boca holds a +3 goal difference, better than the Brazilians’ +1. For this reason, the team from La Ribera remains in second place, in the direct qualification zone for the round of 16.

Despite the loss in Brazil to Cruzeiro, Claudio Úbeda’s team can breathe a little easier thanks to its scoring efficiency against the Ecuadorian side. However, Boca no longer depends exclusively on itself to finish as group leader, since if UC wins its next match against the team from Belo Horizonte, the Olympic tiebreaker favors the Chileans.

How matchday 4 will be played

On the next matchday, the team from La Ribera will have to visit Barcelona SC in Ecuador. Meanwhile, Universidad Católica will host Cruzeiro in Santiago, Chile.

Keep reading:

Boca took another step toward the expansion of La Bombonera

Cruzeiro’s provocation toward Boca fans in Belo Horizonte

Player ratings from Boca’s Libertadores loss to Cruzeiro in Brazil

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