Once Caldas hosted Deportivo Cali in the Clausura round ten of Colombia's first division on Saturday night at Estadio Palogrande, and the visitors snatched a 2:1 victory against the run of play. The result leaves Once Caldas fifth on 33 points while Deportivo Cali climb to ninth with 27. We had tipped the home side at 43 per cent confidence, but the match went the other way — and it was Dinenno who broke the script.
Benedetti opened the scoring for the hosts in the twelfth minute, a neat finish after a period of sustained pressure. By then Deportivo Cali were already feeling the weight, and Cuéllar picked up a yellow card at fifteen minutes for a challenge that shouldn't have been necessary. The visitors worked a short corner shortly after, but Once Caldas cleared without panic and kept their heads.
The second half brought more drama. Zapata pulled level for Deportivo Cali in the fiftieth minute, and soon after Dinenno was booked at sixty-one minutes — the same player who had gone off at seventy-four for the hosts earlier in the game. It was a confusing sequence, but the facts are what they are. Once Caldas substituted Benedetti at seventy-four minutes, perhaps sensing the tide turning.
And here's the thing about the statistics: Once Caldas held 62 per cent possession and registered 21 shots compared to nine, yet their expected goals of 1.84 yielded only one goal. Shots accuracy sat at 32 per cent for the hosts, while Deportivo Cali managed half — 50 per cent — from fewer attempts. Many shots with one goal means chances went begging, and that is the story of the evening.
Dinenno found a way through in the eightieth minute to complete the turnaround, and his strike at eighty-three minutes proved decisive. The away side gave up the ball and hit them on the break, a pattern that served them well on this occasion. Once Caldas extended their unbeaten run to eight matches overall, but this result showed they can be vulnerable when they switch off at a set piece.