Bentín Tacna beat Santos 3-1 in the Segunda División, Regular Season - 16 on 30 August. The hosts took all three points at home, moving two points clear at the top of the table. Santos, already seven points off the leaders, dropped further behind in the race for promotion.
A red card came early, at the eighth minute, and Bentín had to shuffle their shape. To be fair, they kept their side in it. Yellow cards followed at twelve and seventeen, a tense start that didn't let up. By then, Santos were camped in the final third, looking for an opening.
The twenty-minute mark brought another yellow, and the game settled into something more recognisable. Bentín ended a barren spell at forty-three, then added a second just before the break at forty-five-plus-two. Santos replied at fifty, but the hosts didn't panic. At sixty-seven, they sealed it with a third, killing the momentum before Santos could build anything real.
Here's the thing about the numbers. Santos dominated possession at sixty per cent and registered eighty attacks against sixty for Bentín. They won eleven corners to four. But Bentín took six shots on target with two off target, while Santos managed only two on target from eight attempts. The old head settled them down when it mattered.
Bentín sit top with 28 points from fifteen games, eight wins, four draws and three losses. Santos are seventh with 18 from fourteen, five wins, three draws and six defeats. The hosts have opened talks about extending their lead, while the visitors are staring at the drop from their own perspective. The table goes out of the window in these games, but points still accumulate.