In a game where Athletico fully dominated, they got a well-deserved 1-0 win against Metropolitans in the Copa Sudamericana on Wednesday night. The game was valid for the second round of the competition.
The score-line did not do justice to their dominance but Renato Kayzer bagged a goal in the 54th minute to make it two wins from two in Group D so far.
For emphasis, Athletico had over 70 per cent of possession and a combined total of 27 attempts at their opposition goal on the evening.
However, the five-man defence by the visitors made things difficult in front of goal.
Regardless, the hosts spunned several chances and Kayzer could have easily bagged a hat-trick in the first half if he was more clinical.
In the second half, Metropolitanos built some pressure and came close to scoring. Athletico dropped in their standards from the first half but did well not to concede a goal. Against the run of play, they took the lead via Kayzer after a fine finish.
They were offered a man-advantage after Mancín was given his marching orders for a needless tackle on goal-scorer Renato. In the end, a 1-0 score-line was enough to see Athletico take all three points.
With two wins via the same 1-0 result, Athletico move up to six points, but remain in second place after Melgar won Aucas in the other fixture. Melgar also have six points, but lead the table via a superior goal difference.
For their next fixture, Athletico will return to the pitch to take on Melgar in Peru next Tuesday. For the state championships, their next game is on Friday against Paraná Clube in the Campeonato Paranaense.
