By: Luis Imana
Joy returned to Alianza Lima after a 2-1 win athletic class at the Bernal Municipal Stadium for the inaugural tournament. After losing to Sport Huancayo on the last day, the three led by Guillermo Salas had to add to keep an eye on the top of the competition, but to achieve that they had to face a very complicated duel from the start.
With Christian Cueva in the starting XI, the Blue and Whites got a bucket of cold water on 14 minutes when Oslimg Mora applied the ‘ex-law’ and opened the scoring with a mad shot into the top corner.
As if that wasn’t enough, the two-time national champions had to make a substitution in the first half due to the two mandatory substitutions Injury of two key players: the first was Cueva, who came on for Pablo Lavandeira in the 21st minute, and the second was Yordi Vílchez, replacing Pablo Míguez.
When it looked like the ‘Albos’ were in control of the game, Edinson Chávez scored a penalty after being knocked down in the penalty area with 37 minutes. From the twelve levels, Gabriel Costa was responsible for equalizing.
Given the need to reverse the score, ‘Young’ He brought on Hernán Barcos for Pablo Sabbag early in the complement, which increased the pressure on Alba’s defence.
After a few minutes of fighting for the Atlético Grau goal, Franco Zanelatto seemed to score a great goal in favor of the “confidants”.
At 66′ the blue and white ’17’ received Chávez’ center with his chest and with whiplash he smashed the nets Raul Fernandez. It was Zanelatto’s first goal as a player for Alianza Lima.
The La Victoria side were close to making it 2-2 after the referee awarded a penalty at 74′ for Míguez’s foul on Neri Bandiera. However, Angelo Campos shone on the three shots, stopping Bandiera’s shot and keeping Blue and White’s lead.
In the end, the current leader of Peruvian football was able to celebrate an important victory in the heat of Piura, which puts him at the top of the table with 15 points, level with Universitario and Sporting Cristal.
On the other hand, Atlético Grau added their fifth consecutive game without a win in the Apertura tournament, unable to raise their heads. The last time the “Albos” recorded a win in League 1 2023 was on February 11 against binational.
Edinson Chávez shone as one of the characters
After a questionable performance on his debut with Alianza against Sport Huancayo, Edinson Chávez established himself as one of the best players in the win against Atlético Grau. The right side conceded the penalty for Costa’s goal and set up Zanelatto to make it 2-1.
“We had to come to win, the draw wasn’t worth it. In the first game, Salas asked me to score and not spend too much, but this time more should happen. Proud of my colleagues and the people who have supported me since I joined Alianza. It’s a dream come true,” he said. chavez After the game.