Corinthians topples Boca in Copa Lib showdown

Hollywood is full of uneasy pairings who have to put aside their differences for the greater practiced.

From Riggs and Murtagh cursing their way through gunfights in

Lethal Weapon,
to Martin Lawrence and Will Smith's Marcus and Mike blasphemous their way through gunfights in

Bad Boys,
in movies a fiddling tension is crucial to beating the bad guys and coming out unscathed.

Down in the Bombonera, Boca Juniors are hoping their own grouse double-act volition restore the gild's glory days.

Juan Roman Riquelme and Carlos Tevez have had more than than a few clashes in the past, but they have struck an uneasy truce as the Xeneize await to topple their arch-rivals River Plate and get their hands on the Superliga bays.

A Riquelme-Tevez showdown had been predictable ever since the former took up his postal service equally second vice-president at Boca in December, after the ticket headed by Jorge Amor Ameal concluded more than two decades of dominance by candidates linked to former Boca and Argentina president Mauricio Macri and won the elections by a landslide – thanks in no small part to the huge following Roman still commands at the club.

Those 24 years of Macrism have seen Boca abound into a commercial behemoth, while simultaneously losing footing to River on the field, especially in continental clashes, where the nightmare of 2018's Copa Libertadores final defeat nevertheless rankles.

The arrival of Riquelme every bit overall football supremo at the gild aims to redress that residuum. His kickoff claiming: placate young man Boca legend Tevez, who is intimately linked with the previous administration and was widely tipped to leave the Bombonera should Macri-backed candidate Christian Gribaudo neglect to win the presidency.

Riquelme and Tevez accept as well clashed personally over the years, perhaps unsurprising given the considerable egos in play on both sides.

“On the pitch [Riquelme] was an idol but he leaves a lot to be desired off it,” Tevez said of his sometime Boca and Argentina team-mate in 2017 when he received criticism for his conclusion to leave the Xeneize for China.

“When Riquelme had to go out Boca, he left. He went to Barcelona and then Villarreal, so he was out of contract, came dorsum to Boca and had to win the Libertadores so Boca would buy him again.

"It's easy to talk from the outside and one of the things Riquelme is criticised for is that when Boca lose and River win, he comes out talking.”

For his role, Riquelme had been a song, consistent detractor of Boca throughout the presidency of Ameal'due south predecessor Daniel Angelici, and just days after taking over the vice-presidency questioned Tevez'due south will to continue playing.

“I want to look him in the eye and find out what he wants,” he told reporters in December. “In my neighbourhood I used to play football game and I think he did the same, merely I think he lost his ambition to play two years ago.

“We want to run across if we are capable of getting Carlitos back so he tin can savor himself and brand the states bask ourselves.”

At 35, Tevez's hereafter looked far from sure. But, on Dominicus, he took his place in new coach Miguel Angel Russo'southward starting line-up for Boca's first Superliga game of 2020, playing 84 minutes of a dour 0-0 describe at home to Independiente.

At present, despite initial rumours to the contrary – including a bizarre report linking Tevez with a return to Manchester United – he is set to stay at Boca for some fourth dimension yet, having patched upwardly that rocky relationship with Roman.

“I spoke to Roman, every bit I take always said we owed each other a conversation betwixt the two,” Tevez said to reporters in Jan. “We fixed things in v minutes, we told each other the things we had to say, something which will remain private, only stay at-home, everything is adept.”

While it is certainly proficient news for Boca that this most fractious of relationships has been repaired, there are besides more pragmatic motivations backside this detente.

The Xeneize, similar most Superliga clubs, have been hit hard by the economic crisis that has gripped Argentina for the last two years, meaning transfer activity this summer has been almost non-existent.

While the likes of Paolo Guerrero, Carlos Zambrano, Marcos Acuna and Edwin Cardona were all rumoured to be joining in Jan, so far only Pol Fernandez has arrived to boost a squad that looks almost identical to that which finished 2019 with another painful Copa defeat to River.

Boca additionally lost Roma legend Daniele De Rossi to retirement and could yet see more players leave before the transfer window closes.

While Tevez's best days may be well backside him and completing 90 minutes gets harder with every passing game, he is still capable of lending a touch of course to a forward line that in his absence is noticeably unimaginative and i-dimensional.

Goals have been scarce around the Bombonera, with just 19 in 17 Superliga fixtures to date, significant that any striker is welcome right now.

The i matter that unites Riquelme and Carlitos, and always has, is the pair's dear for Boca.

Just iii points behind River at the league tiptop, the pair volition go out no rock unturned on and off the pitch in social club to unseat the Millonarios and regain the championship they lifted in 2018 – not to mention mounting their latest challenge for the Libertadores, which has remained elusive since 2007, when Riquelme dragged his team to glory.

If that means swallowing i's pride and entering a rather uncomfortable marriage of convenience, it appears to be a price this odd couple is willing to pay.

How long this truce will final, of grade, is still anyone's guess. What's clear, though, is that everyone at the Bombonera will be hoping for the archetype Hollywood happy catastrophe for Boca's very own odd couple.