Sportivo Las Parejas went into the Losers Stage of the Federal Tournament A as the side with something to prove, and they left the stadium with a comfortable 4-0 win over Tucumán Central on Saturday. The visitors controlled the tempo from the opening exchanges, scoring before the half-hour mark through Valentin Martinez and never really looked back. To be fair, the hosts had ideas but couldn't execute them under pressure, and the result reflected a performance that belonged entirely to the away side. 27' — Martinez opened the scoring with a clinical finish that caught the defence sleeping.
The hosts tried to respond and had moments of possession, but the quality of their attempts didn't match the visitors' efficiency. By then, Sportivo had already established a rhythm that Tucumán Central simply couldn't disrupt. The yellow card for Joaquin Valenzuela at 40' came as frustration mounted among the home players, who found themselves chasing the game rather than dictating it. Francisco Smith collected another booking just before the break, and the pattern was set for the second half.
The visitors doubled their advantage early after the interval when Julián Emanuel Gauna found space to slot home at 61'. Julian Taverna added a third at 75', and Martinez completed his brace with a fourth at 78', leaving the hosts to see out the final minutes in damage limitation. The yellow cards kept coming — one at 58', another at 59' — and by the time the whistle blew, the scoreboard told a story of complete dominance.
The statistics paint the picture without needing elaboration. Sportivo registered 8 shots on target against just 3 from their opponents, while both sides claimed 5 corners each. Possession was split almost evenly at 48 per cent for the hosts and 52 for the visitors, but the difference lay in what each team did with the ball. The visitors did not travel to make up the numbers; they came to play football and delivered.
For Tucumán Central, the defeat extends a run of poor form that now includes five consecutive matches without victory. They sit ninth in the table with 2 points from 8 games, having lost 6 and drawn 2. The recent results tell the same story — a 0-1 loss to Sarmiento Resistencia, a 2-2 draw with Boca Unidos, and defeats against Independiente de Chivilcoy and Atletico Escobar among others. We had backed the hosts for victory at 38 per cent confidence, but the match went another way entirely.
Sportivo Las Parejas move up to sixth place with 9 points from 7 matches, showing 2 wins, 3 draws and 2 losses. Their recent form had been steady rather than spectacular, with three consecutive draws against Independiente de Chivilcoy, Atletico Escobar and Defensores de Villa before a 3-0 win over Sarmiento Resistencia. This victory gives them momentum heading into the next stage, and the goal difference improvement — four goals scored, none conceded — is the kind of statement that matters in these knockout fixtures.
