Author: Serg Atrakhov, Vishwajit Sawant
Internacional (Bra) – Bolivar (Bol) 2-0 (1-0)
Two months ago, 33-year-old Enner Valencia joined the team as a free agent. The participant in the 2014 and 2022 World Cups has made seven appearances in the Brazilian championship, but so far has only provided one assist on matchday 18. It’s true that it was she who equalized – 2:2 with Corinthians in the 99th minute.
Much more successful is the top scorer in the history of Ecuador’s national team (40 goals) for a new club in the Copa Libertadores: 4 games – 4 goals. In the Round of 16, he scored against River Plate away from home (1:2). They then won an away match against
away match against Bolívar (1-0)
scoring in the 16th minute.
At Beira-Rio, he also managed to score an early goal. 11 minutes into the first half, Wanderson entered the area and headed the ball exactly over the striker’s head – 1-0. In the 26th minute, Valencia scored again, but the goal was disallowed for offside.
At the start of the second half, Ronnie Fernandez managed to equalize, but Rochet saved his shot from the center of the goal. “If you don’t score, I will,” thought Valencia, and in the 60th minute he hit the far corner of the goal. Carlos Lampe only had to clear the ball from the goal – 2:0.
The intensity of the match was briefly interrupted when pepper spray affected both players and spectators, leading to an eight-minute interruption in play. Despite this interruption, Inter were undeterred and continued to show their dominance. In the second half, Inter kept up their attacking pace and came close to extending their lead with goals that were almost missed.
The final result of the match was clear, but the visitors could score a “prestige goal”. In the 82nd minute, the Inter defender scored a handball. The referee used VAR and awarded a penalty. But Sergio Rochet saved the ball, which Ronny Fernandez sent into the bottom corner.
The last time Internacional played in the semi-finals of this tournament was in 2015, when they lost 3-4 on aggregate to Tigres.
Now, in the semi-finals, Internacional will probably play Fluminense, who beat Paraguay’s Olimpia Asuncion 2-0 away from home in the first leg of the quarter-finals.
Incidentally, for reaching the semi-finals, Inter won 2.3 million dollars in prize money. In total, the team has earned 9 million 150 thousand dollars in the current Copa Libertadores. Reaching the final will bring in another 7 million, and winning the World Cup – 18.