Boca Juniors see off nine-man River Plate in Superclásico

Boca Juniors claimed the bragging rights in the Superclásico on Sunday, beating bitter rivals River Plate 1-0 in a heated encounter at La Bombonera that saw the visitors finish with nine men.

Defender Lautaro Di Lollo rose above the River defence to head home the decisive goal in the 27th minute, sending around 50,000 Boca fans into celebration in the 15th and penultimate round of the Clausura tournament.

River's afternoon unravelled early when defender Lucas Martínez Quarta was sent off in the ninth minute. The visitors, who needed a victory to secure their place in the Clausura last 16, were reduced to nine men when Gonzalo Montiel received a second red card in the 79th minute.

Boca capitalised on their numerical advantage to hold on for a crucial victory.

The win lifts Boca to second place in Group A of the Clausura and restores them to the top of the annual standings, strengthening their bid to qualify for next year's Copa Libertadores.

River, meanwhile, remain fourth in Group B but slipped to eighth in the annual table, which awards three qualifying places for the 2027 Copa Libertadores.

Line-ups:

Boca Juniors:
Álvaro Montero – Leandro Lozano, Lautaro Di Lollo, Facundo Herrera (Ayrton Costa, 46), Lautaro Blanco – Santiago Ascacíbar, Leandro Paredes, Milton Delgado – Leonel Flores (Alan Velasco, 62), Miguel Merentiel (Enner Valencia, 76) and Sebastián Villa (Carlos Palacios, 88). Coach: Rodolfo Arruabarrena.

River Plate:
Santiago Beltrán – Gonzalo Montiel, Lucas Martínez Quarta, Nicolás Otamendi, Marcos Acuña – Tobías Andrada (Juan Cruz Meza, 71), Lucas Silva (Lautaro Pereyra, 46), Tomás Galván (Giovanni González, 85), Thiago Almada (Sebastián Driussi, 71) – Ángel Correa and Lucas Beltrán (Lautaro Rivero, 13). Coach: Leonardo Ponzio.