Union Santa Fe secured a 3-2 victory over Instituto Cordoba at the Estadio 15 de Abril on Monday evening, a result that keeps both sides level on points in the Clausura standings. The home side took the lead through Cristian Tarragona before Hernán De La Fuente's late strike proved decisive. Both clubs sit on 21 points from 16 matches, though Union hold eighth place while Instituto are ninth.
The opening goal came at the 13th minute when Leonel Mosevich found the net for the visitors, catching the home side unawares. Union responded well, with Brahian Cuello equalising just before the quarter-hour mark at 25 minutes. Tarragona then restored home advantage with a neat finish at 48 minutes, and for a time it looked like the hosts would take all three points.
By then the match had opened up considerably. Misael Aguirre pulled one back for Instituto at 74 minutes, setting up a nervous finish. The home side held firm until De La Fuente's winner at 87 minutes, though not without drama. Tarragona received a red card on the 90th minute for Union, while Gallardo followed suit for the visitors at 90+6 minutes, leaving both sides with ten men in the closing stages.
The statistics tell an interesting story about how this game unfolded. Union managed just 43 per cent possession yet created two big chances compared to Instituto's zero. The visitors had 57 per cent of the ball but their shots accuracy was a mere 18 per cent, with only two of eight efforts on target. There is no value left at that number when you're chasing a result.
We had called for a home win before kickoff, with 44 per cent confidence. That prediction came good, though the margin was tighter than many expected. Union's xG of 0.95 versus Instituto's 0.81 suggests the scoreline was fair, even if the away side should have done better with their territory.
Both managers made changes in the second half, with Union bringing on Jhon Córdoba and Matías Tissera at 58 minutes. Instituto responded with three substitutions at 73 minutes, including Giuliano Cerato, but it was not enough to salvage a point. The result means Union remain in eighth while Instituto stay ninth, with both teams still fighting for position in the middle of the table.
