Felipe Jonatan’s first half goal was enough for Santos to beat Boca Juniors on Tuesday night as Pexie gained momentum in the Libertadores after a woeful start which saw them lose their first two games.
The game started rather open, with both teams creating chances to score.
However, Santos had the first attempt on goal, coming from Felipe Jonatan in the 5th minute. Three minutes later, Tévez missed an incredible chance to open the scoring, following a cross from Pavón, but the Argentine striker failed to hit the target.
In the 11th minute, Boca came close again and this time it required a save from João Paulo to keep Santos in the game.
Santos replied minutes later, with Kaio Jorge pulling a shot from outside the goal area, forcing a save from Rossi. In the 20th minute, the striker almost turned in a corner kick from Jean Mota, but his effort went wide.
Not long later, Jean Mota had a good chance from a free kick, but he sent his effort over. However, in the 41st minute, Felipe Jonatan finally broke the deadlock, after the full back dribbled pass his marker, and got in a good position in the penalty area to score.
Early in the second half, Kaio Jorge’s shot hit Izquierdoz’s arm in the penalty area and the referee initially ruled a penalty. But in the absence of VAR, the penalty claim was shrugged off.
Tévez came very close to drawing Boca Juniors level in the 50th minute, but his effort was inches wide off goal. Despite all the effort Boca Juniors put in to get a point from the game, they were unlucky and the game ended 1-0 in favour of Pexie.
With the result, Santos are in second place, level on points with third-place Boca Juniors and three behind leaders Barcelona.
For their next Libertadores clash, Santos will face The Strongest on Tuesday in Bolivia and will then get enough time to rest before they travel to take on Barcelona in Ecuador on the 27th of May, two days before the Brazilian Championship returns.
