Serna saves the night in a match with a new expulsion: UnoxUno is a necessary victory to maintain peace in Alianza | ANALYSIS

The last matches of the intimates made it clear that Kevin Serna is unbalanced as a forward only if he has space in front of him. He passed with Fluminense in the debut in the Cup (he was the author of the only goal in the 1-1 draw against the current champion of America). But when it is Alianza that constantly attacks and the rival hides in its own field, Serna suffers. For this reason, perhaps, the Colombian coach decided to return him to the wing position for the match against the northerners so that he has more meters to cover, although with the wear and tear of the back and forth that the position requires.

But after the controversial expulsion of Jesús Castillo, a few minutes before the end of the first half, Kevin became forward again along with Cecilio Waterman, the ‘9’ who also entered for the second half. Hernán Barcos and Jeriel de Santis left. With one man less, the Victorians played on the counter, a perfect scenario for the attacker. Thus, with many meters to go, the first of the game arrived (52′). Waterman reached the baseline, like a winger, and took a cross for Serna, who took advantage of the defensive errors to score his second official goal with the blue and white shirt this year. The first, of course, against the Flu for the Libertadores.

While it is true that they knew how to recover from Castillo’s expulsion, there is a problem that is costing those close to them dearly. And they are precisely the red ones. So far in the Apertura, Alianza received three red cards. The first was to Jiovany Ramos in the fall in the classic against Universitario. The second to Hernán Barcos in the defeat against Cienciano in Cusco. Six points lost. This time the result was favorable, thanks to Ramos’ goal (91′) and Tapia’s expulsion (67′), but those six points are what precisely separate them from the University leader.

Alianza won and forgot for a moment the hard fall in Paraguay for the Cup. But it still does not show itself as the dominating team that it tried to be a few dates ago. Serna was the figure, of course, followed by Carlos Zambrano, the leader of the intimate defense, and the goalkeeper Ángelo Campos; but then there are returns below expectations. This is the UnoxUno from Deporte Total:

Which Ramos do we stay with?

The last image of him is celebrating his header goal. But his obligation is to defend, not attack. And in that area, Jiovany Ramos continues to leave doubts. Against Grau he suffered a lot, they overwhelmed him with some ease. And with the ball at his feet he has proven to be an unreliable player. He can initiate a promising attack, as well as generate a counterattack for the opponent. It is not constant.

Lucky him that he had in Carlos Zambrano a very complete libero. The León has plenty of hierarchy and he always shows it. Able to read the plays and anticipate them, with the solvency to always arrive before the opponent and resolve the plays in the best way.

To the other side, Garces, who entered in the second half to be central. Renzo is the first pass that Alianza needs to come out from below. Quick in crossing, intelligent in anticipating and calm with the ball at his feet, Garcés had a great second half.

Angelo Campos He had little work, but when he was needed, he was present. Especially in the play in which Grau attacked easily on Ramos’ side and had to save a shot from Neri Bandiera with his feet almost from the line of the six-yard box.

Freytes As a winger or winger (as he played in the second half after Castillo’s expulsion) he always delivers. He is, for many, the foreign reinforcement who is currently doing the best. And that, for a compliant player, says a lot about the level of the Alliance.

Rodríguez, away from the area once again

Needless to say, Alejandro Restrepo has the answer to Sebastián Rodríguez’s position. The coach, who sees him on a day-to-day basis, chooses to place him at ‘6’, an intelligent player who proved to be a ’10’ in some games. But for the Colombian coach, the Uruguayan should be the first pass of his team, no matter if it takes him away from the rival area and from the area where he can do the most damage. And there, almost at the height of the centrals, Rodriguez does little damage. Order, manage times, but nothing more. According to Opta data, in the first half, only one pass from ’10’ reached the Grau area. In the second half, already with one man less, none, except for the corners or the free kick that ended in a goal by Ramos.

At his side he placed Catriel Cabellos, tireless interior on the right of 20 years. Run everywhere. He was involved in Serna’s goal. And then he appeared defending an attack from Grau. He is an all-rounder who needs to decide better with the ball at his feet. In the other side, Jesus Castilloabout whom little can be said due to his expulsion.

Boats and De Santis, a lost time

“He is like a brother, he is always advising me”Kevin Serna said about Hernán Barcos, whom he went to hug after his goal. The leadership exercised by the ‘Pirate’, who celebrated his 40th birthday a few days ago, is undeniable. But his contribution on the field is becoming less and less. He started as a starter and had little or no influence on the attack. He retreated to join up, but in front of the goal he did not create danger. In fact, he didn’t shoot on goal.

Same scenario for Jeriel de Santis. The ‘9’ was far from scoring. And, even worse, to influence the construction of the team’s game. In Alianza he has not yet measured up and that worries more than one.