Patronato saw off Atlanta 2-0 in the Primera Nacional regular season on Wednesday evening. The home side took all three points at their own ground, extending a run of results that had been anything but consistent. Atlanta's push for a higher finish took a blow here.
G. Diaz opened the scoring in the tenth minute, giving Patronato the advantage early. The visitors tried to respond but found it difficult to break through. To be fair, Atlanta had been building momentum in recent games, but this was a different proposition.
Things came to a head in the second half when I. Rodriguez was sent off in the fifty-ninth minute. The Argentine had already picked up two yellow cards before that moment. Patronato then had a numerical advantage for nearly thirty minutes, though they did not rush into action immediately.
B. Cortes doubled the lead in the eighty-second minute, putting the result beyond doubt. The home side kept knocking on the door throughout, waiting for their opportunity. By then Atlanta had changed shape, throwing bodies in the way to protect their position.
The result leaves Patronato in sixteenth place with twenty-eight points from twenty-seven matches. Atlanta remain fourth with forty-two points, but the gap between them and the teams above is narrowing. The table goes out of the window in these games sometimes.