River Plate took a step towards stability in the second phase of the Segunda División by seeing off Sportivo Huracán 2-0 on Sunday. The home side moved clear of the relegation zone with a result that ends five games without a victory. To be fair, the visitors had been difficult to break down all season, which makes the scoreline worth examining.
The breakthrough came in the thirty-sixth minute when R. Cabrera found the net. The hosts pressed forward after that, and by then the visitors had lost their shape. It was not a moment of magic so much as patience finding its reward.
A second goal arrived in the seventy-third minute, though the scorer was not recorded in the official log. The visitors had been warned after the first strike, but they failed to adjust their marking. One mistake ends it when you are playing away from home, and that is what happened here.
The statistics tell part of the story. Sportivo Huracán held 54 per cent of possession and registered 118 attacks compared with 110, yet they managed only two shots on target. River Plate had six shots on target and four off target, while the visitors could not find the back of the net with their spare opportunities. Many shots with one goal means chances went begging, and the second goal only confirmed that pattern.
The result leaves River Plate on four points after six games, still thirteen in the table. Sportivo Huracán move to ten points and sit fourth, though the gap at the top remains narrow. The hosts have four losses and one draw to their name, but this win at least shows they can spring a surprise when they need to.