Rosario Central Edge Aldosivi in Tight Clausura Encounter
Rosario Central saw off Aldosivi 2:1 in the fourth round of Argentina's Clausura competition on Thursday evening. The hosts had been building momentum after a 1:0 win over River Plate the previous week, but Aldosivi refused to go away despite sitting bottom-half of the table. By then you can see what kind of match this was shaping up to be — not a game of open ends, but one decided by moments.
Aldosivi took the lead in the 52nd minute through A. Sosa, a goal that caught Central off-guard after they had dominated possession. And here's the thing about that opening period — Central had 73 percent of the ball but Aldosivi's structure held firm. The visitors weren't trying to play through the middle; they were waiting for transitions, and Sosa's finish proved they could be punished.
The turning point came in the 61st minute when N. Zalazar turned it into his own net, cancelling out the visitors' advantage. It was a moment Central had been pushing for, and the equaliser changed the texture of the game entirely. To be fair, Aldosivi had created little — just one big chance all evening — but that single opportunity had been enough to take the lead.
Central took control after that, and J. Campaz got over the line in the 80th minute to complete the turnaround. The visitors had made several changes in an attempt to find a response, bringing on M. Godoy and E. Copetti, but they simply could not break down a resolute home defence. The yellow card for R. Gonzalez in stoppage time was almost symbolic of the frustration on the other side.
The statistics tell the story of a one-sided possession battle, but the match was decided in the final third. Central registered 146 attacks and 18 key passes, yet their 17 shots produced only four on target. Aldosivi, meanwhile, managed just five shots on target from six attempts — a conversion rate of nearly half, which speaks to the efficiency of their counter-attacks.
The result keeps Central fourth on 28 points, while Aldosivi remain rooted to 14th place with eight points from eight draws and eight defeats. What matters here is not the dominance in possession but the ability to capitalise when chances arise. Central weathered the storm after Sosa's goal and then pulled the strings to secure three points they needed badly.