Colo Colo began their participation in the last qualifying phase of the Copa Libertadores ahead of Sportivo Trinidense of Paraguay. The “Cacique” equalized a goal against the Guaraní team.
The goal of the youth Juan Jesús Salcedo, at minute 36put the Paraguayans ahead in a play that surprised a white team that until then comfortably dominated the actions of the first leg of Phase 3 of the regional tournament.
Parity came for Colo Colo at minute 60, through winger Cristián Zavala and as a result of tireless pressure from those led by Argentine coach Jorge Almirón.
Salcedo, in the first danger created by the team from Asunción, managed to kick a ball into the air that was cleared by a Chilean defender and went past goalkeeper Brayan Cortés.
The advantage led the team from Santiago de Chile to modify the tone and redouble their advances towards the goal guarded by Víctor Samudio, who excelled with a couple of saves, one of them from a shot after a ball collection by midfielder Carlos Palacios, whose trajectory he managed to divert in the air.
It was not until the second half that Zavala put the finishing touch to a play that began to take shape in the right corner of the Trinidense area.
After a pass that a Chilean kicked and bounced off the goal, Zavala’s leg arrived to beat an insurmountable Samudio.
The parity forced José Arrúa’s squad to open their ranks and advance to regain the advantage, but the score was doomed with a visitor willing not to give up.
Both teams will meet again on March 13 in Chile, in the return match.
The Venezuelan referee Alexis Adrián Herrera cautioned David Villalba and Luis de la Cruz, from Trinidense, with a yellow card, as well as Carlos Palacios, Maximiliano Falcón, Óscar Opazo and Emiliano Amor, from Colo Colo.